Another Fed-Backed Solar Company Goes Bankrupt

BY BRIAN KOENIG
The New American
Feb. 15, 2012

Adding to the growing list of failed "green" energy companies, another solar firm filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Tuesday in hopes of selling off its solar power subsidiaries and other assets. Energy Conversion Devices Inc. (ECD), a Michigan-based manufacturer of thin-film solar laminates (product shown at left), said it will continue to operate through the bankruptcy and sale process.

Through its subsidiaries Uni-Solar (USO) and Solar Integrated Technologies, the firm develops solar projects and manufactures solar laminates for rooftops and buildings. "We firmly believe there is a strong and sustainable commercial market for Uni-Solar products," ECD CEO and President Julian Hawkins affirmed in a statement. "However our current capital structure and legacy costs are preventing USO from making the investments necessary for the future of the business without restructuring through the bankruptcy process."

[...]ECD’s financial collapse will be tallied as the fourth major bankruptcy in the solar industry in the past year, behind Solyndra, Evergreen Solar, and SpectraWatt, which have also sought Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

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