Note 3 - Discontinued Operations |
12 Months Ended |
|---|---|
Dec. 31, 2014 | |
| Discontinued Operations and Disposal Groups [Abstract] | |
| Disposal Groups, Including Discontinued Operations, Disclosure [Text Block] | 3. Discontinued Operations On September 10, 2010, we announced that we were exiting the solar panel installation business and we were expanding our distribution business to include sales of our Andalay Solar Power Systems directly to dealers in California. The exit from the installation business was essentially completed by the end of 2010. As a result of the decision to exit the California installation business we recorded a restructuring charge totaling approximately $3.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2010, the majority of which were non-cash charges. This restructuring charge was comprised primarily of (i) one-time severance costs of $765,000 related to headcount reductions paid primarily in shares of our common stock, (ii) inventory write downs of $948,000, (iii) lease accelerations and the write off of leasehold improvements of $307,000, (iv) goodwill impairment of $299,000, (v) vehicle, furniture and fixtures and computer equipment write downs of $290,000 and (vi) other prepaid costs write-downs of $367,000. During the year ended December 31, 2010, we recorded a loss from discontinued operations of $6.5 million. During the year ended December 31, 2014, we re-evaluated our warranty liability related to our discontinued installation operations right before and in conjunction with re-entering the installation operations, and reduced the liability by approximately $324,000. This reduction to the liabilities for discontinued operations was recorded as a gain from operations of discontinued operations. The remaining warranty liability related to our previously discontinued operations was reclassified into current liabilities and has been included in “Accrued warranty.” We entered into a Supply and Warranty Agreement and Master Assignment Agreement with Real Goods Solar, Inc. (Real Goods), pursuant to which Real Goods has agreed to perform certain warranty work. The terms of the agreement provide that an escrow account be established as a source of funds from which to satisfy our obligation to pay Real Goods for its fees and reimburse it for its expenses for this warranty work. In March 2011, we entered into an Escrow Agreement with Real Goods and deposited $200,000 into an escrow account. The amount is reflected in other assets in the consolidated balance sheets. The escrow deposit will be released to us in the amount of $40,000, or one-fifth of the remaining escrow funds, per year after each of the fifth through the ninth anniversary of the escrow agreement. In December 2014, $110,000 of the funds in escrow were returned by Real Goods. |