Press Release - AstroPower and Home Depot Expand Solar Power Program World's Largest Home Improvement Retailer to Offer AstroPower Solar Electric Home Power Systems in Select Delaware, New Jersey, and New York Stores - NEWARK, Del., Aug. 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/  AstroPower, Inc. (Nasdaq: APWR) and The Home Depot(r) (NYSE: HD) today announced that AstroPower's residential solar electric power systems are now being sold through select Home Depot stores in Delaware, New Jersey, and New York. This announcement marks the initial East Coast expansion of the companies' solar power program, which was established in three San Diego stores in Sept. 2001. AstroPower's SunUPS(r) and SunLine(tm) Solar Electric Home Power Systems will now be featured in Home Depot stores throughout Long Island, N.Y., five stores in southern New Jersey, and four in Delaware. This expansion brings the total number of Home Depot locations that carry AstroPower's solar electric home power systems to 61. These include 18 stores in greater San Diego as well as 16 in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. Through displays at each of these stores, customers learn how easy it is to generate their own clean electricity with AstroPower solar electric home power systems. The systems are being sold and installed under The Home Depot's "At-Home Services" initiative, a full-service program providing product sales, installation, and service. The Home Depot also extends two convenient financing options to its customers through the At-Home Services program- The Home Depot Consumer Credit Card and The Home Depot Home Improvement Loan. Both options provide customers an easy application process, same-day purchase power, and competitive interest rates. "Expansion of this program reinforces the commitment The Home Depot has made to bring the most environmentally friendly energy solutions to its customers," said Howard Wenger, AstroPower's Vice President, North American Business. "A combination of early success in San Diego and heightened consumer interest in our products on the East Coast has prompted us to move quickly forward with the expansion. Together, we're bringing a terrific solution to consumers concerned about rising utility costs and electricity reliability." AstroPower's SunUPS and SunLine Solar Electric Home Power Systems are complete packaged systems that enable homeowners to produce their own clean electricity. Installed by AstroPower's fully trained and licensed installer network, these systems produce electricity without any fuel, moving parts, noise, or emissions. Both the SunUPS and SunLine systems generate solar electric power and deliver it through a home's existing circuits. As the systems operate in conjunction with the utility grid, electricity not used in the home is sent back to the electrical grid, spinning the utility meter backward and generating a credit on the homeowner's utility bill. AstroPower's SunUPS systems include batteries to provide uninterrupted power 24 hours a day even during utility outages. Tim Kullick, Global Services Merchant at The Home Depot said, "Solar electric power gives people the ability to take control of their electricity generation-affording them greater energy independence and reducing their utility bills. It's an energy solution that's unique, as it is the first consumer product to generate household power from the sun." "The Home Depot is putting the value of solar electric power right at its customers' fingertips," said Dr. Allen Barnett, President and CEO of AstroPower. "The mainstream residential market is AstroPower's fastest- growing market. Mainstream consumers seek the benefits solar power can provide, and they choose this solution when given the option. The world's largest home improvement retailer is giving its customers the option - and it is backing the technology with financing options and service only Home Depot can provide."  This press release contains forward-looking statements that are made pursuant to the Safe Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, as described in the Company's registration statements and periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. As a result, there can be no assurance that the Company's future results will not be materially different from those projected. The projections contained herein speak only of the Company's expectations as of the date of this press release. The Company hereby expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any such statements to reflect any change in the Company's expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which such statement is based. For more information on PR Newswire, visit <http://www.prnewswire.com> Copyright (c)2002 PR Newswire Association Inc. All Rights Reserved. A United Business Media company. Distributed by FluentMedia, a service of Tribune Media Services. Copyright (c)2002 by Tribune Media Services Back to main news page