SolFocus gets California regulatory nod

Mountain View, Calif.-based SolFocus said today its solar concentrator panel product has met reliability and safety standards designated by the California Energy Commission (CEC) and California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC).

In doing so, the startup has been placed on the Eligible California Solar Initiative (CSI) Photovoltaic Modules Renewables Equipment List, which is required for residential, commercial and large scale utility buyers to receive rebates.

The CEC equipment suppliers listed are the only solar products eligible for California solar rebates.

SolFocus said it is the first concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) company to receive the CEC approval. The CEC lists only those companies, which have passed requirements from both the CPUC’s California Solar Initiative incentive programs and CEC's Solar Homes Partnership

Other approved suppliers on the CEC list include companies providing inverter technology, performance and revenue grade meters and performance as well as performance monitoring and reporting service providers. 

SolFocus’ CPV technology employs a system of reflective optics to magnify the light from the sun 500 times onto a small area of highly efficient solar cells. SolFocus claims its CPV systems use 1/1000th of the active, solar cell material used in traditional photovoltaic panels, which helps reduce the overall cost for the system.

SolFocus also said its CPV panels are built from cost-effective materials such as aluminum and glass, which helps deliver a lower carbon footprint for the overall manufacturing of the CPV systems.

Earlier this year, SolFocus was named as one of 11 Department of Defense research projects awarded a grant in concert with university-led solar projects to make solar energy cost-competitive against conventional forms of electricity (see Solar projects getting $13.7M from U.S. DOE).

Last year, SolFocus raised $52 million in funding for its new European operations based in Madrid, Spain (see SolFocus raises $52M).

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