A SunPower installer installs solar panels on a home in Napa, California, on July 17, 2023.
David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Rooftop solar panel installers SunPower The company filed for bankruptcy after struggling for months in the face of high interest rates and allegations of fraud in its reporting practices.
SunPower shares fell nearly 44% on Tuesday to close at 45 cents a share. The company’s shares have fallen more than 90% this year.
SunPower filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection late Monday in Delaware Bankruptcy Court, listing assets and liabilities at between $1 billion and $10 billion. The company’s largest shareholder is Total EnergyAccording to FactSet.
SunPower said in a statement late Monday that it will sell its Blue Raven Solar, new home business and non-installation dealer network to Complete Solaria for $45 million, subject to court approval. The company has asked the court to approve the sale by mid-September.
SunPower said it plans to sell its remaining assets through bankruptcy proceedings. Its shares fell below $1 in July after the company halted new leases, product shipments and installations.
The residential solar sector has been hit hard by sapping demand due to high interest rates, leaving companies sitting on excess inventory, but SunPower’s shares are also under pressure amid allegations of misconduct in its reporting practices.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission issued a subpoena to SunPower in February seeking documents related to its revenue recognition practices in quarterly reports from 2023 onward, according to filings.
SunPower’s independent accountants, Ernst & Young, resigned in June, saying they no longer wanted to be involved in the company’s financial statements amid allegations that senior members of management had engaged in fraudulent conduct on those statements.
In December, SunPower warned it had breached its credit agreements and that there were “significant doubts” about its ability to continue operating.
