PHOENIX (CBS5) – ECOtality, the electric car-charging company that
operates more than 600 charging stations in Arizona, may be about to
close its door. Last month, the company disclosed a myriad of problems
with the SEC. In that filing, ECOtality released the following
statement: “Although the Company is currently exploring options for a
restructuring or sale of the entire business and/or assets of the
Company, the Company may need to file a petition commencing a case under
the United States Bankruptcy Code as part of any such process or
otherwise in the very near future.” ECOTality was heavily involved in
the federal government’s EV Project, sponsored by the Department of
Energy. The goal of that program was to install charging stations and
electric vehicle infrastructure throughout the United States. In all,
ECOtality says it installed more than 13,000 home and commercial
charging units. The EV Project reimbursed the company for many of those
installations, paying out nearly $100 million. In the filing, the
ECOtality says the DOE stopped making payments to the company. It also
claims that its charging stations are not making a profit. Additionally,
the report says ECOtality has had trouble finding additional funding.
It has also had to pay $855,000 in back wages and damages to settle
Labor Department claims that it violated the Fair Labor Standards Act
and Davis-Bacon Act. A spokesperson for the company says no final
decision on its future has been decided, but that could happen in the
next 10 days. ECOtality was based in Arizona until 2010, and is now
headquartered in San Francisco.
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