Solar lease leader SolarCity has augmented its supply deal with Norwegian solar energy provider REC Group to 220 MW of solar panels following an inaugural arrangement struck in June.
The terms of this new, expanded deal denote that REC Solar will supply its high-quality Peak Energy solar panels at a fixed price, with delivery running from the end of the third quarter of this year through to Q4 2015.
REC has signed a string of supply deals in the U.S. in recent months, and can now boast signed agreements for more than 385 MW of its solar panels, shipped throughout the country for residential, commercial and utility-scale solar projects. Next year will see around 313 MW of panels shipped in the U.S. 26% of the companys predicted 1.2 GW production run penciled in for 2015.
Securing a supply deal with SolarCity could prove lucrative for REC Solar. The Elon Musk-backed solar leasing giant has seen its share of the U.S. residential installer market soar from 28% to a record 36% between Q1 and Q2 of this year, according to GTM Research.
Currently active in a dozen U.S. states, SolarCity's ambition knows no bounds. The company recently began construction work on a module "gigafactory" in upstate New York, producing solar panels based on technology developed by the companys latest acquisition, Silevo.
For REC Solar, the chance to not only work with SolarCity but to increase its supply deal with them represented an opportunity too good to pass up.
"Our original panel supply contract with SolarCity called for a minimum of 100 MW with an option for up to 240 MW over the course of the year," said REC Group senior vice president and managing director of its North American business Arndt E. Lutz. "The rapid adoption of the increased volume demonstrates the successful start of the relationship between the two companies."
Although Europe remains REC Solar's chief hunting ground (accounting for 60% of overall sales in the second quarter), the company is increasingly eyeing the U.S. as the market with the most potential for growth.
In August the company announced that it had secured an 85 MW solar panel supply deal with a major, but unnamed, U.S. EPC company a deal that marked the first large-scale purchase order of its new Peak Energy 72-cell panel series.
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