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Petra Solar Launches Hiring Effort To Grow Green Jobs In NJ

S. Plainfield Company Hosts Officials on Manufacturing Center Tour

SOUTH PLAINFIELD, NJ (July 30, 2009) - Petra Solar President and CEO Shihab Kuran today told New Jersey officials and other guests his company's goal is to grow and keep green jobs in New Jersey as it export products across the nation and around the world.

"Today we launch a search for people to fill more than 100 green jobs in installation, operations and manufacturing and research and development" said Kuran. This hiring effort follows a number of developments resulting in Petra Solar's rapid growth.

Earlier this month, Petra Solar was selected through a competitive process as the first company to be awarded funding under the state's new Clean Energy Manufacturing Fund (CEMF). The program is designed to support companies looking to site or materially expand a Class I renewable energy or energy-efficient product manufacturing facility in New Jersey. Petra received a $3 million loan for the purchase of equipment and machinery and a $300,000 grant for planning and design. It matched the state's investment with an equal amount of private dollars.

In addition, in action that culminated yesterday, Petra entered into a $200 million contract with PSE&G to provide "smart" solar PV systems for installation on 200,000 utility and street light poles in the state's six largest cities and 300 rural and suburban communities.

Also yesterday, the U.S. Department of Energy announced that following a competitive process, it awarded Petra Solar $2.9 million in funding. The company will work with the University of Central Florida (Orlando, FL) and 15 electric utilities with service in NJ, PA, OH, DE, MD, DC, FL, and TX.

Kuran said Petra Solar will triple in size as a result of these actions. He promised the new jobs are just the beginning of the green jobs it plans to create - and keep - in New Jersey.

"We are working with utilities in dozens of other states in demonstration projects similar to the PSE&G pole-mounted solar systems," Kuran said. "Over a relatively short time, we hope to create hundreds of additional jobs to fulfill additional contracts, and we expect most of those jobs to stay in New Jersey. We will export our unique, intelligent solar products but keep the R&D and manufacturing jobs here."

To Jeanne M. Fox, president of the NJ Board of Public Utilities, who was among the dignitaries visiting Petra Solar's headquarters and manufacturing center in South Plainfield today, his pledge was welcome news.

"Petra Solar exemplifies Governor Corzine's vision for our state and its economy," said Fox. "It is a company creating New Jersey jobs by manufacturing products that will generate renewable energy and reduce the greenhouse gases that cause global warming. The world needs these products and they will be looking to New Jersey to find them."

"It is very exciting during these challenging economic times to see manufacturing job growth in our state, especially growth that supports green initiatives," said Carl Van Horne, Chairman of the NJ Economic Development Authority. "The EDA is a proud supporter of companies that 'go green' or manufacture green products, and we plan to support many more companies like Petra Solar through New Jersey's Clean Energy Solutions suite of financing programs."

Petra Solar invented SunWave™ pole-mounted, grid connected PV generation systems in R&D efforts that involved more than 20 patents. "Our SunWave pole-mounted, grid connected PV generation system delivers true technological innovation," said Kuran. "The system combines highly distributed, grid connected photovoltaic generation and smart grid communications capabilities. In addition, it provides enhancement of electric distribution grid reliability through a host of functions such as voltage support."

The SunWave systems will be installed on 200,000 utility and light poles in communities throughout New Jersey following yesterday approval by the BPU of a PSE&G initiative called Solar 4 All. Petra Solar contracted with PSE&G to produce 40 MW of the total through the pole-mounted, grid-connected SunWave systems.

Al Matos, Vice Present for Renewables and Energy Solutions at PSE&G said, "PSE&G's Solar 4 All program approved yesterday by the NJ BPU was designed to ensure that everyone has access to the benefits of solar energy," said Al Matos, PSE&G's vice president of renewables and energy solutions. "The program strongly supports New Jersey's aggressive renewable energy and environmental goals and helps to strengthen the competitive solar industry in the state. By partnering with solar developers like PetraSolar, PSE&G will bring solar projects online more quickly and cost effectively. The pole-attached segment of our program will make solar energy available to every neighborhood in our service area, ensuring universal access."

The U.S. DOE funding supports what is known as the development of Solar Energy Grid Integration Systems (SEGIS). Projects selected by the DOE focus on the most promising technological advances and addressing the development of intelligent system controls to facilitate high penetration of solar energy in the grid. Petra's distribution grid reliability features link directly to these efforts, Kuran said. The U.S. DOE previously awarded Petra Solar its Energy Innovator award and provided an initial SEGIS grant of $500,000.

Kuran, a resident of Greenfield, NJ, who holds a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from the City University of New York and an executive management degree from Harvard University, founded Petra Solar in October 2006. Since then, he has led the company through a period of rapid growth and product development with a particular focus on helping utilities meet and exceed Renewable Portfolio Standard plans through integrated and highly distributed solar systems that are shovel-ready.

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