Titan Solar, a leading residential solar installer, abruptly went bankrupt on June 13, becoming the 16th major solar company to fail in just two years, according to a new report from Time.
Titan claimed it helped over 100,000 homes go solar, but now joins other failed companies like Pink Energy and Vision Solar that faced regulatory action and many customer complaints.
The whole solar industry is in chaos, with top names like SunPower unsure if they can stay afloat. SunRun and Sunnova have seen their stock prices tank nearly 90% since 2020.
The largest solar firm in Vermont — one of the state's few publicly traded companies — declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy this week amid slumping sales and executive turmoil https://t.co/LZXb5rwxsr pic.twitter.com/IV3weOFWgY
— Seven Days (@sevendaysvt) June 7, 2024
Why is solar struggling?
Higher interest rates, less savings on energy bills, and expensive installation costs are part of it.
But Titan’s downfall shows the biggest flaw: the “dealer model” where companies rely on pushy sales reps to cash in on government incentives.
“Their model was grow, grow, grow, at any cost—they didn’t care how they got the sales,” said Walid Halty, founder of Monalee, a solar installer using AI instead of sales reps.
Dealers made big commissions by exaggerating and making promises Titan couldn’t keep.
This led to Titan being put on probation in Nevada in 2023 after many customer complaints.
Titan Solar is a company that has been accused of misleading customers in Nevada. Now, it appears the company has closed its doors. Channel 13's @bryanhorwath will have more coming up tonight at 4:30 p.m. and 8 p.m.
BACKGROUND: https://t.co/obydTkcuE4 pic.twitter.com/uV4MKDQZ1B
— KTNV | Channel 13 News Las Vegas (@KTNV) June 17, 2024
The company is being sued for shady tactics.
In one case, a Titan salesman supposedly forged a customer’s signature, trapping them into paying $166,422.80 for a system they never agreed to buy.
“They screwed over a lot of people,” a former Titan service rep said. “They preyed on people who thought they were going to save money.”
Ara Agopian, CEO of Solar Insure, explained: “The dealers’ primary motivation was to maximize their commissions, which sometimes led to aggressive sales tactics and overselling of systems without adequate consideration for the customers’ specific needs.”
Titan’s story shows what can go wrong when the government heavily subsidizes new technology before the market and buyers are ready.
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Hasty green energy pushes create tempting incentives that get exploited, harming the same consumers they aimed to help.
