WSJ Pro Bankruptcy: Texas Co-op Brazos Keeps Control of Bankruptcy Fate, Fending Off Owners

A bankruptcy judge gave Brazos Electric Power Cooperative Inc. more time to formulate its own restructuring plan, ruling against two member-owner cooperatives that have criticized its focus on raising debt to cover the steep costs of a freak winter storm in Texas in February. Tuesday’s ruling by Judge David Jones of the US Bankruptcy Court in Houston extends the deadline for Brazos to file a restructuring plan through next March and to solicit votes through May without the risk of a competing plan from creditors… Brazos racked up roughly US$1.9 billion in charges from the state’s grid operator, the Electricity Reliability Council of Texas, during the winter storm and another roughly US$180 million buying natural gas. Brazos has challenged the invoices from Ercot in bankruptcy court, a continuing dispute at the heart of the bankruptcy case, Brazos lawyer Louis Strubeck said during Tuesday’s court hearing. “The Ercot claim is the primary gatekeeping issue here,” Mr. Strubeck said.

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