Solar struggles

THE solar power business is growing by leaps and bounds all over the world, including here in the Philippines, but if two news items that crossed my desk last week are any indication, it may be beginning to experience a bit of a shakeout. If that is the case, it would probably be a good development in the long run, but it is important to understand what is happening.

The first, and somewhat simpler of the two stories was the news that SunPower, at one time one of the leading residential solar companies in the United States, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on August 5. According to the bankruptcy paperwork, SunPower has experienced a "severe liquidity crisis" due to the sharp drop in demand for residential solar, compounded by its difficulties in obtaining new financing after it had to correct "a series of erroneous financial reports" to avoid getting in hot water with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.