Commercial, Sourcing Renewables  -  August 26, 2019

Walmart working with Tesla to fix faulty solar panels

Walmart and Tesla are working to resolve a dispute over faulty rooftop solar panels that caught fire at seven retail locations even as the lawsuit, filed August 20 in New York State Supreme Court, continues. In a joint statement issued August 23, the companies said they look forward to re-activating the panels after all issues have been addressed.

In court documents, Walmart alleges millions of dollars in damage from panels that caught fire between 2012 and 2018, the Associated Press reported. Walmart spokesman Randy Hargrove said the two companies are “actively working” to resolve the issue.

Walmart had an agreement with Tesla Energy to install and maintain solar panels on 244 Walmarts, the AP reported, noting Walmart’s complaint alleges that some of Tesla’s solar panels were broken and had exposed wires that caused a fire hazard. The retailer also accused Tesla of engaging in “widespread, systemic negligence” and that it “failed to abide by prudent industry practices in installing, operating, and maintaining its solar systems.”

In addition, AP reported that Walmart learned that Tesla ignored an alert from a store’s solar panels, revealing “Tesla’s utter incompetence or callousness, or both.”

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