SolarWorld Supplies 8.75 MW of Solar Panels for DTE Energy’s Michigan Project Build-Out

HILLSBORO, Ore.

SolarWorld, the largest U.S. crystalline-silicon solar panel manufacturer for 40 years, announced today that the company has supplied a total of about 8.75 megawatts-peak (MWp) of American-made solar panels for DTE Energy projects in Michigan, including the state’s three largest solar systems.

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A DTE Energy solar system of 1.1 megawatts-peak of SolarWorld solar panels is now operating at Domino’s Farms Office Park in Ann Arbor Township, Michigan, which houses the world headquarters of Domino’s Pizza Inc. and more than 50 other corporations. (Photo: DTE Energy)

The DTE Energy projects include systems:

• On nine acres of land located at Domino’s Farms Office Park in Ann Arbor Township, which houses the world headquarters of Domino’s Pizza Inc. and more than 50 other corporations. At 1.1 MWp, the system, visible from U.S. Highway 23 east of Ann Arbor, began operating late this past summer.
• At the headquarters of Ford Motor Co. in Dearborn, Mich., where DTE Energy has installed 1.0 MWp in solar panels atop canopies for employee parking. This project was completed in April 2015.
• On property owned by Noble Oaks Farms along Interstate 96 in Lyon Township, north of Ann Arbor. This system of 818 kilowatts-peak was completed in 2014.

These projects are, respectively, the first, second and third largest solar systems in Michigan. DTE built the systems and plans to own and operate them for 20 years. SolarWorld has supplied solar panels for at least 10 other projects within DTE Energy’s system portfolio, including a system at the energy company’s headquarters in Detroit.

In all cases, the solar panels were supplied through McNaughton-McKay Electric Co., headquartered in Madison Heights, Mich., with market territory in the Midwest and Southeast. Opened in 1910, McNaughton-McKay is a leading distributor of electrical products and a longtime and active partner of SolarWorld.

“The U.S. manufacturing workers of SolarWorld are proud that the products they are making in Oregon are supplying such key American businesses and locations in Michigan,” said Ardes Johnson, U.S. vice president for sales and marketing for SolarWorld. “Together, we are helping that state, already famous for innovation, go green.”

DTE has undertaken the projects under its SolarCurrents program, which is helping the company meet the state’s renewable-energy portfolio standard (RPS). The Michigan RPS requires its utility companies to source 10 percent of their energy from renewables by this year.

DTE Energy (NYSE: DTE) is a Detroit-based diversified energy company involved in the development and management of energy-related businesses and services nationwide. Its operating units include an electric utility serving 2.1 million customers in Southeastern Michigan and a natural gas utility serving 1.2 million customers in Michigan.

About SolarWorld REAL VALUE: SolarWorld manufactures and sells high-tech solar power solutions and, in doing so, contributes to a cleaner energy supply worldwide. The group, headquartered in Bonn, Germany, employs about 3,700 people and carries out production in Freiberg, Germany; Arnstadt, Germany; and Hillsboro, Oregon, USA. From raw material silicon to solar wafers, cells and modules, SolarWorld manages all stages of production ‒ including its own research and development. Through an international distribution network with locations in the United States, Europe, Singapore, Japan and South Africa, SolarWorld supplies customers all over the world. The company maintains high social standards at all locations across the globe, and it has committed itself to resource- and energy-efficient production. SolarWorld was founded in 1998 and has been publicly traded on the stock market since 1999. Connect with SolarWorld on Facebook, Twitter and www.solarworld.com.

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SolarWorld Americas Inc.
Ben Santarris, 503-693-5189
Mobile: 503-927-9858
Head of Corporate Communications