Company Will Receive Approximately $3 Million to Develop
High-Performance Thin-Film Crystalline Silicon Solar Cells

June 26, 2007 (North East, MD) – Blue Square Energy (BSE) today announced that it has been chosen to participate in the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Solar America Initiative, Photovoltaic (PV) Module Incubator Project.  BSE will receive approximately $3 million to address the challenges related to reducing the cost, improving the performance, and expanding the manufacturing capacity of innovative solar technologies to move from small-scale to pilot production. The announcement was made by DOE Secretary Samuel W. Bodman during his keynote remarks to the Renewable Energy Finance Forum of the American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE). 

Under the guidelines of the project, BSE will develop and manufacture high-performance thin-film crystalline silicon solar cells.  Thin-film crystalline silicon solar cells are characterized by the growth of a high-purity silicon layer onto a low-cost metallurgical-grade silicon substrate.  The work will complement the development of BSE’s Bright Point line of solar cells. 

“The DOE’s Solar American Initiative will accelerate the availability and adoption of solar energy in the U.S. and the world,” said Jeffrey Barnett, founder and CEO of BSE.  “With this investment, we will be able to dedicate significant resources towards the commercialization of low-cost, high-performance crystalline silicon solar cells.  Our talented team of researchers and engineers is proud to be a part of this project and is eager to get started.”

The $60 million Solar America Initiative is aimed at increasing the use of solar power across the country.  In addition to the PV Module Incubator program, the Initiative will fund Solar America Cities, in which 13 cities will receive awards to promote increased use of solar-powered technologies, and provide support for universities to research near-term improvements in solar products.

"We believe these projects will stimulate activity in the marketplace and create a ripple effect that will boost the use of solar energy across the country," Secretary Bodman said in his remarks at the ACORE Forum. "Harnessing more of the sun's power is central to reaching the President's goal of increasing our nation's energy security by pushing forward clean, renewable technologies that will allow us to become less reliant on imported sources of energy."

About Blue Square Energy
Blue Square Energy is a developer and manufacturer of high-performance silicon solar cells headquartered in North East, Maryland.  The company produces and distributes the world’s largest and most powerful silicon solar cell. It is currently commercializing its proprietary silicon solar cell technology called Bright Point, which utilizes impurity-enriched silicon to deliver high- efficiency, low-cost solar electricity. More information about Blue Square Energy can be found at www.BlueSquareEnergy.com.