"This is our fourth solar electric system from PowerLight," said Neil Bustamante, Vice President, Mauna Lani Resort (Operation), Inc. (www.maunalani.com). "These clean, reliable systems make sense both for our operating budget and the environment. We project saving $5 million over the next 25 years, while keeping true to Mauna Lani's vision of preserving our beautiful land."

"Mauna Lani's deployment of renewable solar energy throughout its resort illustrates their commitment to environmentally sound, cost-effective solutions," said Daniel Shugar, Executive Vice-President of PowerLight Corporation. "Mauna Lani is truly visionary -- proving every day that solar power is integral to meeting Hawaii's energy needs."

Covering three acres, PowerLight's sun tracking system supplies the majority of Mauna Lani's daytime water pumping power requirements. The 250 kW system maximizes the sun's available energy by capturing 30% more daylight than fixed systems as the tracker follows the sun from early morning to late afternoon. A data acquisition system uses sophisticated monitoring and control technologies, downloading operational data every night for analysis the following day. Changes in operating parameters are conducted remotely by computer.

The 250 kW PowerTracker project is the fourth solar photovoltaic project PowerLight has furnished for Mauna Lani. In 1998, the resort installed an 80 kW PowerGuard(R) solar electric roof system for Mauna Lani Bay Hotel & Bungalows, as well as a 110 kW system to power Mauna Lani's golf facility. Over the last two years, both systems have performed with an availability of over 98%, and continue to generate energy above specification. Not only are these solar systems sparing the environment from thousands of tons of harmful emissions (NOx, SOx and CO2), they are also generating internal rates of return above 20%. Mauna Lani has also deployed a fleet of solar-powered golf cars, outfitted with PowerLight's SunCaddy(TM) electric systems, at its 36-hole, internationally-acclaimed Francis H. I'i Brown golf course. 

PowerLight's PowerTracker systems track the sun from east to west on a tilted axis, generating the maximum energy possible from an affordably priced ground-mounted photovoltaic (PV) system.

PowerLight's PowerGuard solar rooftop panels reduce utility costs substantially over three decades, while extending the lifetime of the roof and providing added thermal insulation benefits to the building. The patented, lightweight photovoltaic (PV) roofing assembly delivers clean solar electricity to the building while protecting the roof from damaging effects of weather and UV radiation.

PowerLight's SunCaddy replaces existing golf car rooftops with an innovative canopy that incorporates clean, reliable solar photovoltaic technology. SunCaddy recharges electric golf and utility vehicles from daylight, substantially reducing recharging costs while doubling the battery life of the electric cars. Designed to fit all major electric utility vehicles, SunCaddy can be installed on new cars, or retrofitted on existing electric golf and utility vehicles. Mauna Lani's entire golf car fleet will be SunCaddy-powered by the end of 2003, saving Mauna Lani thousands of dollars in avoided battery replacement costs during the economic life of the vehicles.

Mauna Lani's new PowerLight PowerTracker system is composed of 24 rows of PV panels. Each row has 40 ASE300 framed modules for a combined output of 10.5 kW ac per row. Two 150 kW Xantrex inverters provide power conversion and system control. The inverters are 96% efficient and extremely reliable. DC power is inverted from 500 VDC to 208 VAC, and then stepped up to 480 VAC for use in near by irrigation pumps. A portion of the energy is stepped up to 12,470 VAC to provide power to irrigation pumps that are over a mile from the PowerTracker site.

Mauna Lani Resort and its affiliated companies are wholly-owned subsidiaries of Tokyu Corporation of Japan.

PowerLight is the leading manufacturer of commercial-scale solar electric products and services. Founded in 1991, PowerLight's systems deliver reliable, affordable clean power for commercial and government customers worldwide.