Sharp Solar Moves Up Corporate Ladder

[RenewableEnergyAccess.com] Sharp Electronics Corporation announced that Ron Kenedi has been promoted to the position of vice president of the company’s solar business unit, the Solar Energy Solutions Group. At the same time, Sharp has elevated the Solar Energy Solutions Group, which is based in Huntington Beach, California, from division status to group status. Kenedi will be responsible for the engineering, marketing and sales of Sharp’s solar energy products in the U.S., Canada and Latin America. He reports to Toshihiko Fujimoto, Chairman and CEO of Sharp Electronics Corporation. Sharp has expanded its solar cell production output to 400 megawatts (from 315 megawatts) per year to meet the burgeoning demand both in Japan and internationally. In October 2003, Sharp opened a solar panel assembly operation at its manufacturing facility in Memphis, TN to meet the increasing demand for solar energy in the U.S. The solar manufacturing facility is assembling 165- and 167-watt solar panels for residential and commercial installations. This year, Sharp will increase the capacity of the plant to 60 MW.