Updated on Mon, Nov 18th, 6AM to add corroboration and Sol-Ark’s response, and 4PM to add an additional response from Sol-Ark, including changes in wording from “OEM” to “contract manufacturer”, a distinction highlighted by Sol-Ark. This story is still developing and may be subject to change.
James Showalter, Founder/Owner of EG4 Electronics and Signature Solar, via DIY Solar Power Forum:
Ethics-wise you are literally shutting down equipment homeowners paid for and depend on to fit some twisted business strategy.
literally seeing dozens of people call me all morning, and I never even sold Deye
Seemingly at the drop of a hat the morning of Friday, Nov 15th, Deye-branded inverters across the US were reportedly intentionally bricked with the message:
This inverter is not allowed use at Pakistan/USA/UK
Pakistan contact inverex
USA contact Sol-Ark
UK contact Sunsynk
Pls return to your supplier. The following page requires a 5-digit pass code to start
This pass code is automatically generated overseas
Several others in the thread have corroborated this:
Deye is the contract manufacturer of the Sol-Ark hybrid inverters, and Sol-Ark have the exclusive right to sell the inverters in the US since 2018, as shown in several lawsuits over the years. Deye-branded inverters have been sold for installation by several companies (seemingly in breach of Sol-Ark’s exclusivity agreement with Deye), and Sol-Ark has exercised its right to exclusivity through the court system.
It’s unclear what the impetus is for this reported shutdown, why it’s happening now, and why it didn’t happen sooner. As many people in the DIY Solar Power Forum have noted, it seems unfair to bring innocent consumers into the fight, who probably have no idea what their inverter brand even is.
One forum user called Sol-Ark on Saturday. The tech who answered the phone seemed to have no idea what the issue was but did say he got some calls from Canada about the same issue. This is backed up by newageddrywall’s post in the forum, as well. Between this and the report from Panama, it seems this may not be limited to inverters in US territories.
Deye has not given a public statement on this issue yet, but Sol-Ark gave me this statement:
Sol-Ark has learned of the situation caused by the unauthorized sales of Deye-branded inverters within Puerto Rico and the USA. Though Sol-Ark has no control over Deye’s actions, we recognize that the messaging conveyed through the Deye-branded inverter’s screen suggests Sol-Ark can provide warranty or service for these cases, which we cannot. Though we are not responsible for Deye-branded inverters or any inverters that are not branded and sold by Sol-Ark or through an authorized Sol-Ark distributor or reseller, Sol-Ark has determined to offer a possible solution to those consumer households that have purchased Deye-branded inverters.
Sol-Ark’s mission, as a veteran-owned company created 12 years ago, is to enable the most reliable, innovative, and affordable energy storage solutions to power families and businesses. Because of this mission and the direct effect that Deye’s actions may have on individual families, for the period from November 15, 2024 through December 31, 2024, Sol-Ark will permit each consumer household that has installed a Deye-branded inverter and has had that inverter’s functions disabled by Deye, to purchase a new Sol-Ark inverter of equivalent performance at a substantially discounted price. If you purchase a Sol-Ark inverter under this limited program, Sol-Ark will pay to have the Sol-Ark unit shipped to your address in Puerto Rico. Sol-Ark will not make this offer available to any person after December 31, 2024. The offer is limited to consumer households and is not being made available to commercial entities or for installation at commercial facilities (only residential locations). Sol-Ark will not be responsible, and will not pay, for any costs related to installation of the Sol-Ark inverter, removal of any Deye inverter or for any damage that may have been caused by the Deye inverter or Deye’s actions.
To take advantage of this offer, the homeowner should take a photo of the serial number and model number of their Deye inverter and then contact Adriana Navarro of Sol-Ark at +1 (214) 919-1632 to initiate the process during normal business hours between 8 AM and 5 PM Eastern Standard Time, Monday through Friday. Sol-Ark will retain the full right and discretion to make final determinations regarding the availability of this program and the terms under which it operates.
This response would suggest that higher-ups at Sol-Ark are not party to the reason for the shutdown, and that the shutdown was done solely at Deye’s discretion.
To address potential concerns about internet-connected Sol-Ark inverters, Simon McLean, Vice President of Marketing for Sol-Ark, commented this:
Sol-Ark inverters are managed, updated and serviced through Sol-Ark’s proprietary “MySolArk” platform, which has been designed and implemented to ensure the security and privacy of Sol-Ark customers. Data obtained through the platform is processed and maintained by Sol-Ark in the U.S. and used solely in accordance with Sol-Ark privacy policies. For further information on Sol-Ark’s privacy policies, see www.sol-ark.com/privacy-policy/. Energy security, resiliency and customer privacy are fundamental Sol-Ark tenets, and we will continue to develop and deploy the MySolArk platform with data and energy security at the forefront.
This situation is not only concerning because people may be without their solar production and backup power right now, but also because it seemed incredibly easy for a company in China to flip this switch on their inverters that brought power production to a halt. It brings to mind the mind-boggling amount of solar installed in the US that’s producing power using Chinese-manufactured inverters. As tensions and trade wars escalate with China, it’s an uncomfortable level of leverage that China may hold over our country.
Plus, country-level politics aside, the internet-connectedness of all solar installed over the last 5-10 years is a huge potential problem, illustrated by this exact situation. By default, most inverter manufacturers have ways to remotely configure inverters, and those internal systems pose large targets for cyber attackers. If any of the big manufacturer’s systems are breached, that’s gonna be a real bad time.
It’s easy to start running down the cliff of assumptions, but our takeaway here as installers is to be very careful what inverters we install (making sure there is official and direct support in the US), and even start thinking about more secure networking structures for the systems we install, especially if they’re used for backup power in the case of an outage, or used as off-grid inverters entirely.
It’s unknown what the resolution for this will be for the affected customers. It truly is shitty that Deye didn’t run this geographical check at the initial installation of these inverters. This will likely penalize the wrong people as a result.
