WILMINGTON, Del. — Solyndra, the bankrupt solar-panel maker that received a $535 million Energy Department loan guarantee, should disclose the amount of tax breaks the owners of Solyndra’s parent would get under a restructuring plan, the federal government said.
The Energy Department and the Internal Revenue Service objected to Solyndra’s proposed plan for exiting bankruptcy protection, according to documents filed Aug. 24 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court.
Under the plan, Argonaut Ventures and Madrone Partners would benefit from net operating losses that would allow them to avoid potentially “hundreds of millions” in future tax liabilities at a company unrelated to Solyndra, the government said in court papers.
Solyndra’s collapse prompted congressional scrutiny of President Barack Obama, who praised the company during a May 2010 tour of its facilities. I
Argonaut Ventures, the investment arm of billionaire and Obama fundraiser George Kaiser’s charitable organization, holds almost 39 percent of Solyndra’s parent, 360 Degree Solar Holdings. Under the exit proposal, Solyndra would be liquidated while its parent would be reorganized and its owners would retain their equity interests, allowing them to keep the NOLs, according to court documents.
