Waters joins Powin nearly a year after his last major role in the energy industry, as CEO of solar PV module manufacturer Maxeon Solar Technologies. He spent two years at the head of Maxeon from its formation in August 2020 as a spin-off from residential solar and storage provider SunPower, which Waters oversaw. He was at SunPower for two years before the spin-off too.
Maxeon took four months to replace Waters, appointing Bill Mulligan as CEO in January this year, reported by our sister site PV Tech.
Whilst at Maxeon, Waters ‘…led a substantial turnaround in profitability and revenue growth through a transformation of its global operations and the creation of new businesses, including significant expansion in the utility-scale market’, Powin said.
“On behalf of the Board, we thank Geoff Brown for his visionary leadership over the last seven years, taking us from start-up to market leader in a multi-billion-dollar global industry,” said Glenn Jacobson, Powin’s chairman. “We’re delighted to have Jeff Waters taking over as leader of the company at an important stage in the company’s development, given his deep experience bringing companies to scale in dynamic, technology-driven markets.”
“Serving as Powin’s CEO has been an honor. I couldn’t have asked for a more innovative and passionate team to be a part of,” said Brown. “I’m excited to welcome Jeff on board. With his extensive background in operations, manufacturing, and product development leading us forward, I can’t wait to see where Powin goes next.”
Powin is the third-largest BESS provider by MWh of projects contracted after Tesla and Fluence according to company president Anthony Carroll, speaking with Energy-Storage.news at the Energy Storage Summit USA in Austin in March.
Although operating in separate parts of the clean industry, some similarities can be drawn between Maxeon and Powin. Both have launched manufacturing facilities in Mexico and the US in recent years and could also been seen to be targeting the ‘higher-end’ of their respective markets with their choice of technology and/or target customers.
Energy-Storage.news last interviewed Geoff Brown about the company’s strategy in May 2022.