Apricus Solar Announces U.S. Expansion.

NANJING, China & GUILFORD, Conn. -- Apricus Solar, a China-based manufacturer and exporter of high quality thermal solar collectors, heat dissipation units, solar controllers and related components, announced today the opening of its U.S. head office.

The U.S. office opening is in response to high demand for Apricus products in the U.S. and Latin America, where regional sales are expected to triple in 2007. Apricus products, using evacuated tube and heat pipe technology, solar controllers, and a wide range of accessories for solar thermal installations, are designed for both large and small scale domestic applications. Apricus products provide hot water, space heating, and even air-conditioning (cooling) in some applications.

As part of the expansion, Apricus has named Steve Elkin as Director of Marketing. Elkin will oversee Apricus' Connecticut office and the expansion of its current roster of U.S. distributors. The company's growth plans are bolstered by knowledge of alternative energy in the Americas and attractive tax credits for homeowners as well as corporations in the United States.

"As a result of Federal solar tax credits, we see strong potential for major growth in the U.S., which is quickly becoming Apricus' largest market," said Elkin. "According to the Solar Rating & Certification Corporation, based in Florida, Apricus is one of only two China-based companies currently producing solar-thermal equipment eligible for U.S. tax credits. Additionally, homeowners, business owners, corporations and municipalities are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of alternative energy sources."

Apricus' solar collector, based on evacuated tube technology, is extremely competitively priced. This is partly due to increased production volume of evacuated tubes over the past few years, resulting in greatly lowered manufacturing and material costs. The result is that evacuated tubes are replacing the traditional flat plate panel typically used in Western countries, and will soon be the default choice for thermal solar applications worldwide.

"We have designed our solar collector to meet the market and quality requirements of the Western market. We also ensure ease of installation, as installation labor costs account for a large portion of total system cost," said Michael Humphreys, CEO, Apricus Solar. "Evacuated tube technology is now becoming as popular as flat plate thermal solar collectors in the West. Given the cost-effectiveness, simple installation and maintenance of Apricus' products, we expect great market growth in many Western markets, particularly North America."

About Apricus Solar

Apricus Solar is a manufacturer of evacuated tube heat pipe solar collectors, solar controllers and a wide range of accessories for solar thermal installations. Apricus' range of renewable energy products are sold under the Apricus trademark and exported worldwide through a network of official distributors and dealers. Apricus products are designed and manufactured to meet international product quality and engineering standards, and have a strong emphasis on simplistic design and ease of installation and use.