US residential solar installer PetersenDean has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
Red Rose Inc, the parent company of the California-based installer, filed a voluntary petition with the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Nevada on 11 June.
The firm appears to have preceded the filing by suspending solar and energy storage business activities, confirming on the same day that it would not be offering installation quotes for the time being.
Documents published by legal services provider Epiq show Red Rose estimates between 200 – 999 creditors, with estimated liabilities of between US$10 million and US$50 million. No funds are expected to be available to unsecured creditors after administrative expenses are paid.
While principally a roofing firm, PetersenDean had garnered some attention as an installer of domestic solar and energy storage solutions, not least of all in its home state of California.
Last year the company partnered with Sunnova to specifically target the Californian residential solar market, in a response to legislation coming into force in January 2020 and stating that all newbuild homes must feature solar arrays. John Berger, chief executive at Sunnova, said at the time that the partnership would help homebuilders meet the new requirements “affordably and easily”.
PetersenDean also secured a partnership with microinverter supplier Enphase Energy in January, signalling both firms’ intent to bolster their market share as the US residential solar sector expands.
But ambitions for that market have been dented by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, and California has been amongst the hardest hit of US states. Strict shelter-in-place measures have been in force and last month Enphase warned that anecdotal evidence suggested installs in California had fallen by as much as 50% as a result of the pandemic.
While installers have since signalled that a rebound was occurring “faster than expected” – installations are said to currently stand at February, or pre-COVID, levels – business is forecast to remain down substantially on expectations for the market this year.