Blue Square Energy Struggling for Funding, Management Issues?

When we first learned about solar-cell maker Blue Square Energy at last year’s Dow Jones Alternative Energy conference, the Maryland-based startup was listed in the conference category as “Raising Money Now.” Looks like they may have jumped the gun a bit, according to a post on the Gunther Portfolio blog. The post reports that Blue Square Energy has yet to secure its planned $30 million round of funding, and that inability to raise money has caused the company to miss commercialization milestones and start employee layoffs and has even prompted executives to ask current CEO Jeff Barnett to resign.

The post attributes this information to a recent conversation with Blue Square Energy Chairman Ray Moyer and board member Joe Babin. We contacted Blue Square Energy and are waiting to hear back and confirm this information.

Blue Square Energy’s technology uses impure silicon to make solar panels that it says are lower cost and higher efficiency than the traditional solar-cell manufacturing methods. Standard silicon-grade solar has to remove the impurities, but Blue Square Energy says it has figured out a way around that with its Bright Point technology. “Proprietary manufacturing techniques mean the Bright Point line will soon have the most cost-efficient solar cells on the market,” the company says.

The Gunther report says the company didn’t raise its planned financing because of management and leadership issues:

BSE failed to raise $30 million in VC funding due to concerns surrounding Allen Barnett and the failure at AstroPower along with serious questions related to Jeff Barnett’s ability to manage.

Allen Barnett, CEO Jeff Barnett’s father, is a consultant/advisor to the company.

We’ll add more when we know more.

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