SunPower's New Super-Efficient Solar Panels

We knew solar power had a bright future after watching this video of a speech by Dr. Richard Swanson, President and CTO of SunPower; the company is now walking its talk. Their recently-unveiled 22-percent-efficient (many commercial-ready solar panels are between 7 and 17 percent efficient) Gen 2 solar cells that carry a rated power output of 315 watts; SunPower's previous best was 220 watts. The new panels are on display this week at the Solar Power 2006 Conference and Expo in San Jose, CA. The new design incorporates 96 of SunPower's Gen 2 solar cells that offer improved panel efficiency through a combination of enhanced cell architecture and improved packing density. Compared with conventional solar panels, the new SPR-315 allows customers to generate up to 50 percent more power per square foot of roof area with half as many panels. If all goes as planned, you'll be able to add them to your roof in Spring 2007. ::SunPower via ::Hugg and jiltedcitizen