Wilmington-based Acorn Energy, Inc. completed the sale of the assets of its GridSense subsidiary Franklin Electric Co., Inc. for $1 million.
The asset sale follows Acorn’s April 21, announcement of its intention to liquidate its GridSense business.
Acorn expects that the proceeds from the sale, after transaction costs and an indemnity escrow of $100,000 will be allocated by an independent liquidation officer to satisfy, to the extent of the funds available, the claims of GridSense creditors, including Acorn which is GridSense’s largest creditor. Acorn expects to record a gain from discontinued operations on this transaction in its third quarter report, as the value of the GridSense assets had previously been written down to nearly zero.
GridSense develops and markets remote monitoring systems for electric utility companies. It generated revenue of $2.5 million in 2015, but had not generated profits or positive cash flow for Acorn in the recent past. GridSense was reported as a discontinued operation in Acorn’s first quarter results.
Jan Loeb, Acorn’s CEO, commented, “We view the sale to Franklin Electric as the best possible outcome for both Acorn and the GridSense team. The sale aligns GridSense with a strong company, platform and resources that are focused on serving the utility industry. We are very pleased to have achieved such a favorable outcome in a short timeframe.”
Acorn has struggled with a downturn in energy-related industries and other problems. Its stock has plummeted from $12 a share in 2012 to 17 cents a share.
