(November 4, 2019)Walmart has agreed to drop a lawsuit
against Tesla filed because of a rash of solar panel fires installed by
SolarCIty a subsidiary of Tesla. The suit is dropped in a new filing
with the New York State Supreme Court.
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Suit claimed years of gross negligence by Tesla
The negligence was claimed to have caused fires on the roofs of at least
seven Walmart stores causing millions of dollars worth of damage and
resulting in Walmart deactivating the panels.
Walmart's lawyers
accused SolarCIty of adopting "an ill-considered business model that
required it to install solar panel systems haphazardly and as quickly
as possible in order to turn a profit". They also argued that SolarCIty
relied on contractors and subcontractors who were not properly trained
and supervised.
Project TItan
Business Insider discovered that Tesla quietly initiated Project Titan
to repair the problems with the solar panels. An article by the Business Insider describes
the program: "Last summer, Tesla initiated "Project Titan," an attempt
to quietly replace defective solar-panel parts across the US, according
to documents viewed by Business Insider. Specifically, Tesla was
replacing connectors and optimizers, parts that are meant to regulate
the amount of energy flowing to a solar panel. Too much energy can cause
a fire."
Lawsuit is withdrawn
The settlement appears to have been in the works for a while. Back in
August Walmart spokesperson Randy Hargrove said that the companies were
working toward a resolution. Also, Tesla Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
Elon Musk said that he had spoken to the Walmart CEO shortly after the
suit was filed and that the two had reached a resolution of issues He
claimed that the suit would be withdrawn.
In a joint statement the
two companies said: “Walmart and Tesla are pleased to have resolved the
issues raised by Walmart concerning the Tesla solar installations at
Walmart stores. Safety is a top priority for each company and with the
concerns being addressed, we both look forward to a safe re-energization
of our sustainable energy systems.”
The two companies have avoided what could have been a long and costly battle in the courts.
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