The FBI has raided the homes of solar panel maker Solyndra’s top executives, according to the Center for Public Integrity’s iWatch News and ABC News.
The agents visited the homes of current CEO Brian Harrison and company founder Chris Gronet, as well as another unnamed executive, on Thursday, ABC reports. The FBI also raided the company’s headquarters on Thursday. An FBI spokeswoman said that she couldn’t comment on the raids as the affidavits are sealed.
The federal investigation is being conducted along with the Department of Energy’s inspector general. Solyndra was the beneficiary of $535 million in loan guarantees from DOE that are now coming under scrutiny from both Republicans and Democrats in the House. Of special interest to lawmakers are assurances that Solyndra executives gave members of Congress over the summer that the company was in solid financial condition.
On Thursday, the ranking members of the House Energy & Commerce Committee and its investigations and oversight subcommittee asked their Republican counterparts for a hearing on Solyndra
In their note to the Republicans, Ranking Member Henry Waxman (D-CA) and Oversight & Investigations Subcommittee Ranking Member Diana DeGette, (D-CO) wrote: “Less than two months ago, Mr. Harrison met with us and other Committee members to assure us that Solyndra was in a strong financial position and in no danger of failing.”
They cite a letter dated July 13 addressed to both the Democratic and Republican leadership authored by Solyndra’s Harrison.
The letter offers some selectively rosy facts about Solyndra’s progress in the marketplace.
For example, Harrison noted that “Solyndra’s revenues grew from $6 million in 2008 to $100 million in 2009 to $140 million in 2010. For 2011, revenues are projected to nearly double again.”
Then he added: “The company just completed a record quarter for shipments, with strong demand in the United States. Last year we shipped 65 megawatts of panel production and expect that to double again this year.”
The letter goes on to tell lawmakers how the factory funded by the DOE loan guarantee was completed “under budget and ahead of schedule.”
The letter did not mention the problems Solyndra was having with its finances, which the company disclosed in a bankruptcy filing earlier this week.
Also on Thursday, the Republican-controlled committee extended invitations to company executives, DOE officials, and the White House Office of Management and Budget to testify about the Solyndra collapse. The committee previously subpoenaed OMB documents in June, and the two sides continue to wrangle over which documents are subject to the subpoena.
As iWatch News and ABCNews note, DOE has been sitting in on Solyndra’s refinancing meetings, so the question is why DOE and everyone else was so surprised when Solyndra declared bankruptcy.
