Well, if the "not reliable" comment was simply about the fact that the sun doesn't shine 24 hrs a day, then I find the use of the term "unreliable" to be very poorly applied. If it was used in the proper sense that the solar tracking panels fail even when the sun is shining is a problem of maintenance or perhaps design. I agree tracking is a failure in general but perhaps it was an experimental design to see how well tracking did.
Also, you use the phrase "I was told" or similar in several places to report what some unqualified stranger told you about the design/usage. Personally, I would take that with a large grain of salt and do a little additional research before condemning the whole thing to complete stupidity, mismanagement or worse.