Suntech Power Holdings Co., Ltd. (NYSE: STP), the world's largest producer of solar panels, celebrated its 10th anniversary by announcing that more than five gigawatts (GW) of Suntech solar panels have been installed by customers and partners around the world since its inception in 2001. The 5GW of Suntech solar panels can generate enough clean electricity to offset approximately 3.78 million tons of CO2 per year: this is similar to planting 9 million trees or removing 1.5 million cars from the road.
Suntech is the first and only solar panel maker in the industry to achieve this coveted milestone. With growing adoption of solar among more and more countries around the world, Suntech aims to achieve the 10GW milestone in the next two years.
"We are extremely proud to achieve this milestone of 5GW installed capacity on our 10 year anniversary. This achievement was made possible by our customers, business partners and employees who have been working throughout the global solar ecosystem to make solar electricity affordable for everyone," said Dr. Zhengrong Shi, Suntech's Founder and CEO. "With a focus on achieving retail grid parity in 50% of global markets by 2015, we will continue to work with our customers and partners to change the way the world produces and consumes energy."
Suntech's solar panels are generating clean power in a myriad of environments all around the world - from sunny deserts, to snow covered rooftops, and salty coastal environs. Since 2001, Suntech's solar panels have provided an estimated 1 million people around the world, primarily in off-grid regions, with reliable access to basic electricity. Suntech aims to provide 20 million people with access to basic electricity by 2020.