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Area Development - Site Selection, Facility Planning and Workforce Development

China Sunergy Co., Ltd Plans Solar Module Manufacturing Hub In Sacramento, California

02/20/2017
China Sunergy Co., Ltd., a specialized solar cell and module manufacturer, reported its Sunergy America subsidiary entered into a lease agreement with McClellan Business Park in Sacramento County, California. The company will build a facility with up to 400 megawatts of high efficiency solar module manufacturing capacity.

The new plant, located in a 140,000 square-foot manufacturing building in McClellan Park, is expected to begin operations in May 2017.

The County of Sacramento acquired McClellan Business Park in 1999 to redevelop McClellan Air Force Base. McClellan Air Force Base was renamed McClellan Business Park in 2001. McClellan Park boasts a fully operational airport, full-service hotel, fitness facility, rail system, office, industrial, retail and dormitories. The project consists of 3,000 acres with approximately 8.5 million square feet of useable buildings and 500 acres of developable land and is fully entitled for over 16 million square feet of commercial, retail, office and residential buildings.

As a major step forward in China Sunergy’s global operations strategy, the new plant with fully automatic production lines aims to efficiently serve customers across the United States, which is the second largest market for the applications of solar energy, State officials said. The new plant expects to create more than 200 job opportunities locally.

"We are delighted make solid steps toward introducing CSUN-branded and Made-in-America solar modules to local customers,” Tingxiu Lu, Chairman & CEO of China Sunergy said. “Our new state-of-the-art facility will have a positive impact on the Company’s strategy of expanding its market share in the U.S market and benefiting the development of local economy through the jobs created and investment made."

The company looked at other locations on the East Coast and in areas of the Midwest, but picked McClellan Park in Sacramento because of the skilled labor, California leading the solar industry conversation, and savings on the logistics costs, local officials said.

“We are very pleased to have China Sunergy join our growing roster of manufacturing companies at McClellan Park,” Larry Kelley President of McClellan Park said. “China Sunergy further solidifies our mission to redevelop the former Air Force base into a modern business park while creating jobs for the Sacramento region.”

“This lease transaction was completed after China Sunergy’s national search for a suitable facility,” said Ken Giannotti, Senior Vice President of McClellan Park. “We would like to thank Sacramento County Economic Development Department, Sacramento Employment and Training Agency (SETA), Greater Sacramento Economic Council, Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) and the California Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development for their critical roles in completing the transaction.”

The Greater Sacramento Economic Council assisted with providing and developing a workforce study for China Sunergy to meet their workforce requirements.

“We are thrilled CSUN chose to build their first North American manufacturing plant at McClellan Park,” CEO of the Greater Sacramento Economic Council Barry Broome said. “Their entry into this market validates the Sacramento region as the ‘California Option’ for companies interested in expanding into the US market.”

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