SunPower Performance
Solar Panels

• There are a variety of key technical differences between SunPower Performance solar panels and Conventional Panels, including the design and layout of the solar cells, the conductive material used, and the electric architecture—which combine to enhance the reliability, performance and aesthetics of Performance panels.
• To go into a bit more technical detail, first, we laser cut each SunPower Performance cell into six strips and layer them in a shingled configuration to create a ‘hypercell’. This shingled hypercell allows us to fit more active cell area into each panel, boosting power and efficiency. Second, Performance cells are connected with a conductive adhesive borrowed from the aerospace industry to offer multiple and redundant paths for energy flow. This allows us to remove the front contact conductive ribbons and solder bonds found in conventional cells that can block active cell area and deteriorate over time, leading to cell failures and power deficits. Finally, SunPower Performance panels feature a unique parallel circuit architecture that significantly limits power loss in shade and soiling. The result is a superior shingled panel constructed with commodity cells, outperforming conventional panels in efficiency, performance and reliability.

SunPower^® Performance solar panels use high efficiency mono PERC cells, as opposed to SunPower's proprietary back contact technology developed for our Maxeon panels.

We built the Performance solar panels for high reliability, high efficiency and low degradation—driving an estimated 8% more energy yield in a fixed space over the first 25 years of operation when compared to Conventional mono PERC Panels1SunPower 425 W, 20.6% efficient, compared to a Conventional Panel on same-sized arrays (370 W mono PERC, 19% efficient, approx. 1.94 m²), 0.25%/yr slower degradation rate (Jordan, et. al. Robust PV Degradation Methodology and Application. PVSC 2018). .

Costs vary from project to project. Performance panels generally have a price point that is competitive with Conventional Panels.