From pv magazine USA
Maxeon Solar Technologies says that it is acquiring Complete Solaria’s dealer channel operations, as well as its solar panel patent portfolio relating to shingled cell solar panel technology.
The shingled cell technology, originally developed by SunPower, is incorporated into Maxeon’s Performance line of solar modules. The 425 W modules use bifacial mono-PERC solar cells made on large-format eight-inch G12 wafers, and have an efficiency of 20.6%, according to Maxeon. Maxeon was spun off from SunPower in 2020, when both became separate entities.
Maxeon’s CEO Bill Mulligan said that the transaction with Complete Solaria will expand the company’s distributed generation footprint incorporating Solaria’s dealer chanel, which will accelerate Maxeon’s direct sales efforts. Plus, he said, it will give Maxeon “immediate access to a qualified source of tariff-free solar panels that we plan to market adjacent to our flagship IBC solar panels, allowing us to replicate in the US market the “better-best” product strategy we have successfully employed in our international markets for years.”
California-based Complete Solaria is an integrated provider of solar installation solutions using its own 360 W to 400 W solar modules. The company was formed in November 2022, when Solaria merged with installer Complete Solar, and operated the resulting Complete Solaria business as a vertically integrated company. In July of this year the company announced its intention to go public upon completion of a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) merger with Freedom Acquisition I Corporation
The acquisition of Complete Solaria’s solar panel patent portfolio adds to the over 130 granted patents and over 80 pending patent applications for fundamental shingled solar cell panel technology. Mulligan noted that Maxeon designs and manufactures globally, and plans to use the shingled solar cell technology in its the cell and module manufacturing facility the company plans to build in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Maxeon announced in August that it had chosen Albuquerque for its new 3 GW facility, which will produce TOPCon PV-silicon cell technology and the Maxeon’s proprietary shingled-cell Performance Line solar modules. The company said the facility will produce millions of solar modules each year for the growing utility-scale and distributed-generation markets in the U.S. Maxeon reports that its new plant is expected to be the first large-scale cell and module manufacturing in New Mexico. While 3 GW is the planned capacity, the company said there’s a chance it will increase it to 4.5 GW in the future.
According to Will Anderson, CEO of Complete Solaria, after the transaction is complete, the company plans to concentrate on it core systems segment.
“This transaction will provide Complete Solaria with capital to optimize our end-to-end customer offering, including beautiful, high-quality solar energy systems with Maxeon premium, high performance solar panels,” said Anderson.
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