Solar demise strands clients

THOUSANDS of Townsville solar panel customers are in limbo after a major company went bust.

West End business Country Solar Pty Ltd has been placed in liquidation.

The news comes more than a year after it invested $ 550,000 to move from South Townsville to a larger site on Ingham Rd.

Creditors and liquidators will meet on Wednesday next week to determine a sale of business agreement.

The collapse of the business prompted concern from a former worker in the solar panel industry who fears Townsville customers of the business will be unable to access maintenance and repair services.

“People went with them thinking they would be around for a long time but now they’ve shut up shop and a lot of people are in limbo,” said the man, who asked not to be named.

“There are certainly hundreds, maybe thousands, of Townsville customers who could be affected by this.”

David Weston from solar business Green Electrical said the collapse would complicate attempts by customers to access repair services.

“Customers should be covered by the manufacturers’ warranty but when a business is in liquidation it becomes more complicated and messy to get panels fixed,” he said.

“It’s better to have that company around as they have the details and data.

“It also depends on the equipment that was purchased.

“If it’s high quality the warranty could last 20 years but if it’s cheap it could have already expired.”

He said the solar panel industry in Townsville was under some pressure due to changes to the renewable energy target policy, which provides subsidies.

The Queensland Solar Bonus Scheme, which gave customers the ability to receive a feed- in tariff of 44c per kilowatt- hour for excess electricity exported to the grid, led to a boom in the solar installation industry in Townsville.

Mr Weston said uncertainty and subsequent watering down of the policy in 2014 hurt the industry in Townsville.

“Panels are still basically free now as you get your money back over the years, but that will change and next year people will have to start paying,” he said.

He said the collapse of Country Solar left Horan and Bird as the dominant Townsville solar company.

Liquidator David Ross from Hall Chadwick did not respond to the Bulletin.