OCR Solar & Roofing and BP Solar Expand Relationship

OCR Solar & Roofing and BP Solar Expand Relationship

VACAVILLE, Calif., Jan 31, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- OCR Solar & Roofing and BP Solar, a global leader in solar energy, today announced an expanded agreement to provide turn-key solar installations to production homebuilders throughout Northern and Central California. Within the framework of the expanded agreement, valued at over $10 million, OCR Solar & Roofing will receive the exclusive right to offer BP Solar's market-leading EnergyTile roof-integrated solar modules to production homebuilders in Northern and Central California. In addition, OCR Solar & Roofing will also offer BP Solar's low profile Integra(R) framing system for asphalt shingle roofs.

Originally purchasing solar modules under a nonexclusive supply agreement, OCR has seen an increase in its solar revenue by over 300% since offering BP Solar's products, and the company expects the growth rate to more than quadruple in 2008.

"Our agreement with BP Solar is built on a strong relationship which will strengthen the support that we provide to our homebuilder customers," said Aaron Nitzkin, vice president, Solar Division for OCR Solar & Roofing. "It is a great time in California for new home renewable energy solutions, and we plan to aggressively educate homebuilders and consumers this year on the impact and significance of solar energy."

Unlike most solar providers that just install solar panels, OCR installs both the roofing and solar electric systems. OCR provides this turn-key solution to many of the region's leading homebuilders, including Christopherson Homes, Pinn Brothers Fine Homes, Ponderosa Homes, and Tim Lewis Communities.

"This key relationship with OCR allows us to further our goal of becoming a leading provider of solar electric systems on new homes in California," explained Geoff Slevin, vice president of Sales and Marketing for BP Solar, North America. "We are confident that with our solar expertise and products along with OCR's strong roofing reputation, we will be able to make that happen."

The agreement is designed to support new homebuilders by offering roof- integrated solar electric systems for energy-efficient homes. Benefits to the homeowner include dramatically reduced or even eliminated electric bills, improved comfort, federal tax credits and an aesthetically pleasing roof design.

OCR Solar & Roofing

OCR Solar & Roofing is one of the nation's largest installers of fully- integrated solar roofing solutions and the exclusive partner to global leader, BP Solar, for production homebuilding in Northern California. Led by its President, Dieter Folk, OCR provides homebuilders a collaborative approach to roofing by creating innovative solutions that meet their individual needs. The progressive company is ranked one of the top 10 residential roofing contractors in the country and has gained the trust of over 100+ homebuilders through their prompt attention, dependability and highest quality of craftsmanship. For further information, please visit www.ocrsolarandroofing.com.

BP Solar

BP Solar, part of BP Alternative Energy, is a global company with over 2300 employees. BP Solar designs, manufactures and markets products which use the sun's energy to generate electricity for a wide range of applications in the residential, commercial and industrial sectors. With over 30 years of experience and installations in more than 160 countries, BP Solar is one of the world's leading solar companies having 228MW annual manufacturing capacity in 2007, plus another 700MW capacity under construction. BP Solar has solar cell and module manufacturing plants in Sydney, Australia; Bangalore, India; Madrid, Spain; and Frederick, MD, USA; and module manufacturing in Xi'an, China. In Frederick it also has casting and wafering facilities. BP Solar invests more than $10m annually in photovoltaic research and development.

BP Alternative Energy, launched in November 2005, combines all of BP's interests in low and zero-carbon energy including wind, solar, hydrogen power with carbon capture and storage, natural gas-fired power generation, biofuels for low carbon transport and distributed energy for emerging markets. For more information, please visit www.bpsolar.us or www.bpalternativenergy.com.