Sunrun has assumed ownership of some or all of bankrupt Sungevity's solar financing agreements, according to an email obtained by GTM.
You'll recall Sungevity as the richly funded startup that promised an "awesome" solar sales experience, but ended up declaring bankruptcy in March of this year.
Here's an excerpt from the email.
As you may have heard, your original solar service provider, Sungevity, has filed for bankruptcy and will no longer be servicing your solar electric system.
No need to worry, the agreement you originally signed with Sungevity has been transferred to Sunrun. Now, Sunrun will be your solar service provider and will take care of you by offering you the same worry-free service -- we will own the solar system and be responsible for monitoring and maintaining the solar system for the full duration of your 20-year agreement.
And the email itself.
Sungevity spent a decade searching for a residential solar business plan, losing almost half a billion dollars in the process. The company filed for Chapter 11 protection in March and entered into a $50 million court-ordered "asset purchase agreement" led by Northern Pacific Group. The sale followed several rounds of staff reductions that mistreated employees with ambush layoffs, no severance and bounced paychecks.
Sungevity's market share peaked at 2.5 percent in 2014 and fell to 1.6 percent in Q3 2016. Total capacity installed peaked in Q1 2016, according to GTM Research data.
During the bankruptcy proceedings, a Sungevity leasing customer wrote in a court document: "My concern is that the assets I have leased from the company will be sold and my rights negatively impacted from such a transfer. I entered into my lease agreement in good faith that both parties would honor the terms of said agreement. I paid upfront all my lease costs for the entire term. I would expect any buyer to honor that payment and all other terms of my agreement. I contacted Sungevity immediately upon receiving the court notice of the proposed sale."
The customer wrote that Sungevity "responded quickly, stating that the sale should have no effect on my lease," according to a letter (PDF) in a court docket.
And so Sunrun, as well as Mosaic, are going to be the caretakers of those rooftops. (Sunrun CEO Lynn Jurich talks about the future of the residential solar market here.)
Solar loan provider Mosaic posted this on its website in May.
Q: I had a signed contract with Sungevity. What’s going to happen with my project?
A: One of our core values at Mosaic is to be a steward of our planet and customers. To that end, we’ve advocated fiercely on your behalf for Solar Spectrum (the company that acquired Sungevity’s assets) to support the warranties that you signed up for. The good news is we have been successful in most cases. Solar Spectrum has stepped up and agreed to honor at least part of the Sungevity warranties, and the specific details of coverage will depend on your individual situation:
- Contracts signed prior to the formal bankruptcy date of March 13, system has reached PTO, Mosaic loan is fully funded. Borrower gets a 7 year warranty as a direct result of negotiation by Mosaic.
- Partially funded loan, pre-PTO. The full Sungevity agreement will be honored by Solar Spectrum.
- Signed agreement, installation has not commenced. Solar Spectrum will either honor the existing agreement or sign a new one with new terms.
Whatever is left of Sungevity has been renamed Solar Spectrum and will no longer be offering third-party financing.