Description of business and basis of presentation |
9 Months Ended |
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Sep. 30, 2018 | |
| Accounting Policies [Abstract] | |
| Description of business and basis of presentation |
Description of Business and Basis of Presentation
Description of business
Tecogen Inc., or the Company, we, our or us produces commercial and industrial, natural-gas-fueled engine-driven, combined heat and power (CHP) products that reduce energy costs, decrease greenhouse gas emissions and alleviate congestion on the national power grid. The Company’s products supply electric power or mechanical power for cooling, while heat from the engine is recovered and purposefully used at a facility. The Company also installs, owns, operates and maintains complete energy systems and other complementary systems at customer sites and sells electricity, hot water, heat and cooling energy under long-term contracts at prices guaranteed to the customer to be below conventional utility rates.
The majority of the Company’s customers are located in regions with the highest utility rates, typically California, the Midwest and the Northeast. The Company's common stock is listed on NASDAQ under the ticker symbol TGEN.
On May 18, 2017, the Company acquired 100% of the outstanding common stock of American DG Energy Inc., formerly a related entity, in a stock-for-stock merger (see Note 4. Acquisition of American DG Energy Inc.).
Basis of Presentation
The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles for interim financial information and with the instructions to Form 10-Q and Article 8 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, they do not include all the information and footnotes required by generally accepted accounting principles for complete financial statements. In the opinion of management, all adjustments considered necessary for a fair presentation have been included. Operating results for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the year ending December 31, 2018.
The condensed consolidated balance sheet at December 31, 2017 has been derived from the audited consolidated financial statements at that date but does not include all of the information and footnotes required by generally accepted accounting principles for complete financial statements.
For further information, refer to the consolidated financial statements and footnotes thereto included in Tecogen's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017.
There have been certain changes in accounting principles as discussed below in the section entitled "Significant New Accounting Standards Adopted this Period."
The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company and entities in which it has a controlling financial interest. Those entities include the Company's wholly-owned subsidiaries American DG Energy Inc., TTcogen LLC, and a joint venture, American DG New York, LLC, in which American DG Energy Inc. holds a 51% interest. Investments in partnerships and companies in which the Company does not have a controlling financial interest but where we have significant influence are accounted for under the equity method. Any intercompany transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.
The Company’s operations are comprised of two business segments. Our Products and Services segment designs, manufactures and sells industrial and commercial cogeneration systems as described above. Our Energy Production segment sells energy in the form of electricity, heat, hot water and cooling to our customers under long-term sales agreements.
Reclassification
Certain prior period amounts have been reclassified to conform with current year presentation.
Use of Estimates
The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates.
Income Taxes
The provisions for income taxes in the accompanying unaudited consolidated statements of operations differ from that which would be expected by applying the federal statutory tax rate primarily due to losses for which no benefit is recognized.
Significant New Accounting Standards Adopted this Period
Cloud Computing Arrangement. During the third quarter of 2018, the Company early adopted ASU 2018-15 "Customer's Accounting for Implementation Costs Incurred in a Cloud Computing Arrangement that is a Service Contract" as it is currently undertaking implementation of a new enterprise resource planning system (ERP). The Company opted to apply the provisions of ASU 2018-15 on a prospective basis. The primary effect of the provisions is to capitalize certain implementation costs during the application development phase and to amortize those costs prospectively over the life of the agreement rather than expense them currently as general and administrative costs.
Revenue Recognition. In May 2014, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued an accounting standard update (ASU 2014-09) related to revenue from contracts with customers, which, along with amendments issued in 2015 and 2016, supersedes nearly all current U.S. GAAP guidance on this topic and eliminates industry-specific guidance. The underlying principle is to recognize revenue when promised goods or services are transferred to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration that is expected to be received for those goods or services. The Company adopted this accounting standard update on a modified retrospective basis in the first quarter of 2018. See Note 2., Revenue for further discussion.
Investments in Equity Securities. In January 2016, the FASB issued an accounting standard update related to investments in equity securities requiring unrealized holding gains and losses to be included in net income. Prior to this update, unrealized holding gains and losses related to available-for-sale securities were included in accumulated other comprehensive income and not included in determining net income. This accounting standard update became effective for the Company beginning in the first quarter of 2018 and is applied by means of a cumulative-effect adjustment to the balance sheet as of January 1, 2018. The Company adopted this accounting standard update in the first quarter of 2018 which resulted in reclassification of $165,317 of cumulative unrealized holding losses from accumulated other comprehensive loss to accumulated deficit. The future impact of recognizing unrealized holding gains or losses in net income is dependent on the movement in the stock prices related to such investments.
Significant New Accounting Standards or Updates Not Yet Effective
Leases In February 2016, the FASB issued an accounting standard update related to leases requiring lessees to recognize operating and financing lease liabilities on the balance sheet, as well as corresponding right-of-use assets. The new lease standard also makes some changes to lessor accounting and aligns key aspects of the lessor accounting model with the revenue recognition standard. In addition, disclosures will be required to enable users of financial statements to assess the amount, timing, and uncertainty of cash flows arising from leases. The accounting standard update will be effective for the Company beginning in the first quarter of fiscal 2019 on a modified retrospective basis, and early adoption is permitted. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of this accounting standard update on its consolidated financial statements.
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