The long list of VC-funded solar startups is starting to shrink.  We crossed Optisolar off the list, a victim of hubris (see Inside OptiSolar's Grand Ambitions) and it looks like SV Solar is soon to be history -- a victim of a poorly hatched business plan by neophyte staff and investors who should have known better.

SV Solar received $10.2 million in funding two years ago from partners at Bessemer with scant solar experience. The company funded a low-concentration PV firm (strike one), with a staff that had very little solar experience (strike two), based on some amazing cutting edge technology that they called -- a prism (strike 3).

Tough getting IP protection on a prism, I imagine.

The company’s value proposition was based on the high price of silicon at the time by investors who didn’t fully get the concept of supply and demand -- how the price of the silicon commodity was bound to drop as capacity was added.

Even when the price of silicon was high, you could see the flop sweat come over company spokespeople when they presented.  It was clear that even they didn’t buy their own story.

I’ve emailed Justin Label of Bessemer, the VC investor in the firm, but have not heard back from him.  Steve White, the CEO, responded via email with the following:

“SV Solar is actively seeking additional funding or other strategic alternatives. NDAs preclude further comment.”

According to Linked-In:

Tim Fischer, the VP of Business Development, still listed on the SV website, is now at 3M.

Lenny Sharp, the VP of Marketing, still listed on the SV website and phone directory, is now at Hitachi.

And according to a good source, the VP of Engineering at SV is looking for a job.

The last press release they issued was in August of 2008.

All of this adds up to SV Solar being in the startup death spiral.

2009 will be a year of attrition for weak startups in solar power and greentech.  It will be a gut-wrenching experience but it will leave the industry leaner and stronger in the 20-year solar boom to come.