Abound Solar Files For Bankruptcy As Government Supported Headaches Continue

Green tech company Abound Solar has filed for bankruptcy and will liquidate its assets. The move is the latest in a government supported U.S. solar panel program that has lost hundreds of millions in taxpayer dollars.

Abound Solar joins the likes of Solyndra LLC and Evergreen Solar Inc., both which folded after receiving government support and then being met with lower priced Chinese competition in the solar panel market.

Abound Solar filed for Chapter 7 liquidation in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware. The shutdown will result in 125 lost jobs.

Thankfully the Colorado-based thin-film panels maker had only taken $70 million of a $400 million loan that was guaranteed by the U.S. Department of Energy.

In December 2010 the federal government approved a seven-year loan to Abound Solar but froze those payments in August 2011. The solar company was also funded with a $300 million private investment.

The Department of Energy has been continuously attacked by Republican lawmakers because of failed attempts to kickstart the green tech industry in the United States with taxpayer money, a point that will be further driven home with yet another solar company bankruptcy filing.

Last week executives at Abound said they had tried to reach an agreement with buyers but those negotiations failed and the company was left with no choice but to file for liquidation.

Solyndra is currently being sold in pieces to various buyers, a likely outcome for Abound Solar as it attempts to liquidate $100 million in assets to slightly offset $500 million in liabilities.

The company’s bankruptcy filing is listed under In re: Abound Solar Inc, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, District of Delaware, No:12-11972.