"The unit will operate a food processing system at a farm in Edison, Calif.," explains Quentin Kelly, chairman and CEO of WorldWater. The farm's system should be in operation by December of this year.

"Our newly developed solar power technology enabling us to drive pump systems up to 600 horsepower is opening the mainstream power market to us, particularly in energy-and air quality-conscious states. California is first, but farms and water utilities in other states are contacting us as well," he adds.

Agriculture, water utilities and refrigeration are prime markets for the high-powered solar pumping systems, which operate alone or in combination with the electric grid or diesel generators, and have the added values of cleaning up the air and the environment as well as "net metering" - saving unused self-generated solar electricity and banking it with the electric utility for later use, reducing demand on the utility grid, according to Anand Rangarajan, executive vice president of WorldWater.

WorldWater announced its first sale ($287,000) of the proprietary AquaMax and Trade in August to drive a 50-horsepower irrigation pump and light up outer buildings of a ranch in Firebaugh, Calif. It is expected to begin operating in late October, Rangarajan says.

Last month, that sale represented the largest solar pumping system to be scheduled for installation, but the farm's new pump is six times larger than that, declares Kelly. The company currently is in negotiations for even larger systems (500 Hp) with other large farms, municipal water utilities and wineries, he says.