PGI has after 3 three years of intensive crisis management assistance to an Indian based wind energy company, has recovered its 20 SLG 30kW wind turbines from a unscrupulous wind-energy promoter in California.
The experience of PGI in this matter amounts to a case study and fine example of the value of due diligence and verifiable durability of consumables and players who wish to profiteer from the green movement.
CASE HISTORY:
If PGI’s client had procured a small amount of germane business intel, their involvement with an unscrupulous vendor (and the small fortune it cost to obtain justice, could have been avoided.) The subject 20 wind turbines had been manufactured by 1996 by Nevada based Synergy Energy Co. In 2004, the turbines were promoted in India under the company name Appropriate Energy, Inc., Nevada, in hopes of becoming an approved supplier and technician in Tamil Nadu’s lucrative Remote Area Village Rural Electrification Program. Their claims were many, included sound-bites regarding social responsibility and the ‘challenges’ of India’s need to commit to sustainable energy to cover its demand. All the truth of their vision unfortunately washes away when the curtain was pulled back to show that the turbines (with gearbox-gen-set operating ranges between 0-40C; and bench tested performance rating in dry air/ dust free/ 15C air ) could not operate in the intense humid heat of Tamil Nadu’s summers. As such, in Appropriate’s ‘test proven proven technology’ report, failed to report that its only India based performance tests in a remote village caught fire and burned due to excessive heat. Appropriate/Synergy blamed ‘unskilled India labor’ for the fires, despite the well known standard that all companies in India (including Auroville Future Center for Urban Research) maintain that systems must be able to maintain 60C operating temperatures in order to be safe and appropriate.
CRISIS AND ITS MANAGEMENT:
The 20 mills were sold back on UCC terms to the manufacturer’s representative in the U.S., who immediately breached the payments and perfection of security to the India company. Thinking it could take advantage of the distance between India and the U.S.; and the inability for an Indian company to seek quick justice in India, the unscrupulous green-pioneers secreted the goods and refused all modes of settling the matter amicably.
Enter Peerless Green Investments. PGI was approached in 2008 for a crisis management project to determine what could be done by the India company to recover its lost assets wit a value well over seven figures USD. PGI crisis-management team immediately organized and mobilized its professional in-house team of international lawyers, auditors, policy experts and energy specialists …and within 6 months had the turbines located, verified, liened allowing the India company to obtain Justice in the U.S. while sitting comfortably at their offices in India. In early 2010, the remainder of the structured settlement was breached and again PGI crisis management intervened and now the India company enjoys free and clear ownership of the SLG inventory. Furether, an unscrupulous promoter group has been erased from the California and international map of energy promoters and developers.
CONCLUSION:
It turns out the US wind energy promoter was not licensed in California, and had been “re-selling’ as investment and outright the turbines without disclosing the judgment lien to potential buyers. The moral of this story is simple: KNOW WHO YOU ARE DEALING WITH…. Not all in the green revolution have an eye on making the world a more sustainable place. Do not be swayed by incredible self-promoting claims and the unverifiable reports of experience and results. Whether you are a homeowner looking to reduce your monthly utility bill or an international NGO facilitating a scaled international social sustainability objective, get information that is third party verified and audited. Else you will spend years lamenting your victimization. An ounce of prevention is the rule of thumb no matter what your level of investment. Sustainability is the urgent need of the day, and many nefarious agents capitalize on the well-intentioned. Should you have questions or need assistance, please contact info@peerlessgreen.net Subject: Due Diligence.
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