enron mentions enron seeks money for trading unit as customers flee ( updatel )
bloomberg , 12 / 03 / 01
enron says it has $ 1 . 5 bln in bankruptcy financing ( correct )
bloomberg , 12 / 03 / 01
enron acquisition bid announced by standard power ( update 3 )
bloomberg , 12 / 03 / 01
enron to cut 4 , 000 jobs at headquarters in houston ( update 6 )
bloomberg , 12 / 03 / 01
dynegy sues enron in texas for natural - gas pipeline ( updatel )
bloomberg , 12 / 03 / 01
enron insiders sold more than $ 1 . 2 billion in stock since 1990
bloomberg , 12 / 03 / 01
u . s . banks ' enron debt is overstated , analysts say ( updatel )
bloomberg , 12 / 03 / 01
enron corp . to cut 4 , 000 jobs in u . s . , bulk in houston
dow jones news service , 12 / 03 / 01
pension plans estimating millions lost on enron invest
dow jones news service , 12 / 03 / 01
funds liquidate enron bond holdings , see little recourse
dow jones news service , 12 / 03 / 01
eott energy partners not party to enron bankruptcy
dow jones news service , 12 / 03 / 01
us energy markets unmoved by enron chapter 11 filing
dow jones energy service , 12 / 03 / 01
dueling enron , dynegy lawsuits start of long battle
dow jones news service , 12 / 03 / 01
stocks slide on worries about middle east , enron ; dow industrials down 1 % in late - afternoon trading
dow jones business news , 12 / 03 / 01
dueling enron , dynegy lawsuits start of long battle
dow jones news service , 12 / 03 / 01
ferc chair sees enron fall fostering market transparency
dow jones energy service , 12 / 03 / 01
in the money : enron ' s bankruptcy filing was a rush job
dow jones news service , 12 / 03 / 01
usa : enron says about 4 , 000 workers to be laid off .
reuters english news service , 12 / 03 / 01
usa : u . s . house energy panel sets meetings on enron .
reuters english news service , 12 / 03 / 01
usa : enron bankruptcy judge heard more high - profile cases .
reuters english news service , 12 / 03 / 01
usa : us northwest natural seeks to buy portland general .
reuters english news service , 12 / 03 / 01
enron field moniker uncertain in wake of bankruptcy
associated press newswires , 12 / 03 / 01
eott energy partners , l . p . not a party to enron bankruptcy
pr newswire , 12 / 03 / 01
enron seeks money for trading unit as customers flee ( updatel )
2001 - 12 - 03 18 : 11 ( new york )
enron seeks money for trading unit as customers flee ( updatel )
( adds traders ' comments in 19 th - 23 rd paragraphs and adds
details about pipelines stopping shipments in 20 th paragraph . )
houston , dec . 3 ( bloomberg ) - - enron corp . is courting
investors to revive its crippled trading business , even as it
loses customers who fear the company will be unable to make good
on its obligations .
energy companies such as mirant corp . and aquila inc . have
taken business elsewhere . at enrononline , the web site that once
handled $ 2 . 8 billion in commodity transactions a day , trading has
plunged , raising doubts that enron will be able to rescue the
trading business .
enron , once the largest energy trader , sought protection
yesterday from creditors in a bankruptcy that was the largest in
u . s . history . the company is in talks with financial institutions
to fund the wholesale trading business ` ` under new ownership , ' '
chief operating officer greg whalley said in a statement .
` ` until we ' ve seen the fallout from this bankruptcy , i don ' t
think you ' re going to find a lot of entities that are prepared to
trade with ' ' enron , said daniel gordon , head of commodities
trading at hagerstown , maryland - based allegheny energy inc . , which
owns utilities in five states . ` ` anyone who thinks this will be a
quick bankruptcy is deluding themselves . ' '
houston - based enron has lost $ 26 billion in market value
since mid - october , when the company restated $ 586 million in
earnings and disclosed that its executives may have profited from
enron ' s dealings with affiliated partnerships that bought enron
assets .
enron , which was the buyer or seller on every transaction on
its web site , handles only a fraction of the trades it once did .
the company said today it will fire 4 , 000 workers in houston .
` difficult to resurrect '
the wholesale trading business of enrononline , which had been
a valuable property , ` ` has for all practical purposes ceased
operation and in a post - bankruptcy scenario , may in fact be
difficult to resurrect , ' ' fitch inc . , a chicago - based firm that
rates corporate credit , said in a report today .
trading has surged in markets that compete with enron ,
including the new york mercantile exchange and intercontinental
exchange inc . dynegy inc . chief executive officer chuck watson
said his company ' s energy - trading web site has seen increased
traffic .
` ` enrononline will just disappear , ' ' said peter fusaro ,
president of global change associates inc . , a consulting firm in
new york . enron ' s portfolio of trades ` ` is evaporating ' ' and ` ` is
replaceable ' ' with competing electronic trading platforms .
dynegy ' s watson said on a conference call with analysts and
investors that his company would try to expand in europe , where
enron was the dominant energy trader . enron said friday it would
fire more than 1 , 000 workers in europe .
shutdown
enrononline shut down wednesday after dynegy canceled its
plans to buy enron , depriving enron of the cash it needed to meet
its obligations and all but ensuring the company would be forced
to seek protection from its creditors .
later in the week , the site was offering trading in 472
commodity products , a third of its usual offerings , according to
company officials . on thursday , the site logged 825 trades , down
from the normal amount of about 5 , 000 .
` ` we ' re actively trading , ' ' enron spokesman eric thode said
today , declining to elaborate .
` ` there may still be trading going on , but it ' s primarily to
unwind positions , ' ' fitch credit analyst ralph pellecchia said .
` ` it ' s certainly not new growth or for profitability . for all
intents and purposes , enron ' s horsepower , its earnings - generating
machine , has been effectively shut down . ' '
needs capital
enron declined to name the ` ` leading financial institutions ' '
it is in talks with to provide new capital for the trading
business .
` ` if these discussions are successful , they could result in
the creation of a new trading entity with a strong and
unencumbered balance sheet , ' ' whalley said . ` ` we understand that
it may take time for counterparties to resume normal trading
levels with this entity , but we are confident that this business
can be put back on a solid footing . ' '
enron ' s top creditors include citigroup inc . ' s citibank and
j . p . morgan chase & co . the blackstone group is helping enron with
its financial restructuring .
a revival of enron ' s trading business isn ' t likely anytime
soon , analysts said .
it may take ` ` months to years , if ever , ' ' said david chang ,
manager of natural gas trading at bank of america na . in the
meantime , enron has ` ` alienated a lot of its suppliers and
customers , ' ' he said . ` ` it would be difficult for ' ' enron to come
back .
stopped shipping
nisource inc . , which operates 16 , 000 miles of gas pipelines ,
stopped shipping enron ' s gas on saturday because of credit
concerns , company spokesman kelly merritt said . williams cos . ,
which controls 27 , 000 miles of pipes , stopped shipping enron ' s gas
last week .
` ` enron has lost all credibility , ' ' fusaro said .
in the meantime , some traders that had become accustomed to
the ease and speed of online transactions are finding it difficult
to adjust .
kevin cokinos , co - owner and vice president at cokinos energy
corp . in houston , said he has had to rely on his old network of
telephone brokers for price quotes rather than enron ' s web site .
` ` it ' s hard to do as many deals because you ' re spending so
much more time on each one , ' ' said cokinos , whose company trades
about 500 million cubic feet of gas a day . ` ` we hope somebody
picks up enrononline so it will come back the way it operated
before . but that might be kind of tough . ' '
- - bradley keoun in the new york newsroom ( 212 ) 318 - 2310 or at
enron says it has $ 1 . 5 bln in bankruptcy financing ( correct )
2001 - 12 - 03 17 : 55 ( new york )
enron says it has $ 1 . 5 bln in bankruptcy financing ( correct )
( corrects second paragraph say $ 250 million is part of the
$ 1 . 5 billion in financing , not an additional loan . for more enron
news , see { top nrg } . )
new york , dec . 3 ( bloomberg ) - - enron corp . , which yesterday
filed the biggest bankruptcy case in u . s . history , told a judge in
new york that it has $ 1 . 5 billion in bankruptcy financing that
will be provided by a bank group led by j . p . morgan chase & co .
the energy trader also asked u . s . bankruptcy judge arthur
gonzalez for permission to draw $ 250 million of the financing
immediately to keep its trading and other operations running while
it tries to reorganize .
- - jeff st . onge and jim polson in new york with andy pratt in
enron acquisition bid announced by standard power ( update 3 )
2001 - 12 - 03 17 : 05 ( new york )
enron acquisition bid announced by standard power ( update 3 )
( adds comment from enron spokeswoman in sixth paragraph )
washington , dec . 3 ( bloomberg ) - - enron corp . , once the
seventh - largest company in the nation , has become the takeover
target of a former natural gas marketer who wants to replace
management and revitalize the bankrupt energy business .
richard ryan , chief executive of an oak brook , illinois ,
company called standard power skilling , who stunned investors when he
quit in august six months after becoming ceo , picked up $ 76 . 1
million .
employees and investors have sued enron , accusing executives
of selling shares while touting the company . enron stock , which
traded as high as $ 90 in august 2000 , is all but worthless after
the company wrote off more than $ 1 billion of investments and
disclosed a $ 1 . 2 billion loss in shareholder equity because of its
dealings with affiliated partnerships .
` ` they caused us to lose our money , and they made money , ' '
said steve lacey , an emergency dispatcher for portland general
electric , enron ' s oregon - based electric utility unit .
lay didn ' t return telephones calls seeking comment and
skilling , through a spokesman , declined to comment .
lacey , like many of portland general ' s 2 , 700 employees ,
bought enron shares for his 401 k investment plan . the stock , which
he planned on using for his retirement , closed today at 40 cents .
lacey filed suit against enron in houston on nov . 20 , claiming the
company prohibited employees from moving shares out of the
investment plan as the stock fell in october .
billions owed
in its bankruptcy filing , houston - based enron and 13 of its
units listed assets of $ 49 . 8 billion and debts of $ 31 . 2 billion .
it owes billions to creditors such as citigroup inc . , bank of new
york co . , j . p . morgan chase & co . , duke energy corp . and williams
cos .
the insider selling at enron is high for an energy company .
insiders at exxonmobil corp . , the biggest publicly traded oil
company , sold $ 410 million of stock during the same period ,
according to washington service , which compiles records from the
u . s . securities and exchange commission .
those sales pale in comparison with some computer - related
technology companies . microsoft corp . insiders , among the most
active sellers at any u . s . company , sold 367 . 2 million shares
worth $ 31 . 4 billion since 1990 , records show .
in the past year , microsoft insiders sold 3 . 6 million shares
for $ 222 million .
biggest seller
in all , 60 officers , directors and trusts they control sold
enron stock during the past decade .
lou pai , former chairman of enron ' s newpower holdings inc . ,
made the most from selling enron shares during the past decade .
pai sold 3 . 89 million shares for $ 270 . 3 million . most of pai ' s
sales were made last year at prices ranging from $ 50 . 52 to $ 78 . 17
a share . pai couldn ' t be reached immediately for comment .
ken harrison , former chairman and ceo of portland general ,
sold almost 992 , 000 shares for $ 78 million . enron bought the
utility in 1997 for $ 3 . 1 billion in stock and debt . harrison also
couldn ' t be reached immediately for comment .
` ` it would seem that insiders had some advance warning that
there were better opportunities , ' ' said david coleman , editor of
vickers weekly insider report .
the selling among enron insiders outweighed the buying during
the past decade . in all , insiders bought almost 488 , 000 shares ,
paying a total of $ 20 . 7 million . the last executive to buy enron ' s
stock : former chief financial officer andrew fastow , who bought
10 , 000 shares on aug . 16 at $ 36 . 98 , according to the washington
service .
fastow was ousted in late october after the sec began an
investigation into enron ' s accounting and its use of investment
partnerships . enron restated earnings for almost five years in
october , wiping out $ 586 million in profits , as it accounted for
losses from the partnerships .
fastow couldn ' t be reached for comment .
- - loren steffy in dallas ( 214 ) 954 - 9453 or steffy @ bloomberg . net
u . s . banks ' enron debt is overstated , analysts say ( updatel )
2001 - 12 - 03 16 : 54 ( new york )
u . s . banks ' enron debt is overstated , analysts say ( updatel )
( updates with closing stock prices . )
new york , dec . 3 ( bloomberg ) - - enron corp . says it owes
citigroup inc . , j . p . morgan chase & co . and bank of new york co .
$ 7 . 55 billion in the largest bankruptcy case in u . s . history .
analysts say the amount owed the banks may be less than half that .
here ' s where they differ .
enron yesterday said in court papers it owed thousands of
creditors $ 31 . 2 billion in loans , unpaid bills and other debts .
citigroup , the biggest creditor , is owed $ 3 billion stemming from
a loan it arranged last year , enron said .
still , the banks probably hold only a fraction of the debts
enron says they ' re owed . that ' s because banks routinely sell parts
of loans to other lenders as a way to disperse risk . banks also
are listed as the holders of bonds and other securities that in
fact are owned by investors . the banks are listed as the creditors
in enron ' s papers .
` ` it ' s very difficult to piece together the reality , ' ' said
robert napoli , an analyst at abn amro inc . who owns citigroup
shares . ` ` they ' ve syndicated out a portion of the loan and they
could have hedged the credit risk through derivatives . ' '
citigroup , the largest u . s . financial services company , is
probably owed $ 1 billion at most , analysts say , and much of that
is backed by collateral such as gas pipelines , on which it should
be able to collect .
the company ' s profit may be lowered by between $ 250 million
and $ 500 million before taxes , or between 3 cents and 5 cents a
share after taxes , as a result of its involvement with enron , said
napoli , who recommends investors buy citigroup shares . citigroup
earned $ 2 . 08 a share in the first nine months of the year .
hurting earnings
j . p . morgan chase - - which enron says is owed $ 2 . 1 billion - -
says its exposure totals about $ 900 million - - $ 500 million
unsecured , and $ 400 million backed by collateral .
that exposure could result in a 15 - cent decline in earnings
per share , said goldman , sachs & co . analyst richard strauss . the
second - largest u . s . bank earned $ 1 . 54 a share so far this year .
j . p . morgan chase acts as a representative for holders of
enron bonds , so while the company is listed by enron as a creditor
on $ 1 . 9 billion of bonds , it may not be owed a cent on that debt .
enron ' s $ 2 . 45 billion debt to bank of new york may work in
much the same way , said lehman brothers analyst henry dickson . he
estimated the bank is owed about $ 50 million .
much of j . p . morgan ' s exposure is tied to citigroup ' s $ 3
billion loan to enron , a credit enron doesn ' t even mention . a
syndicate of at least five other banks - - including j . p . morgan
chase - - contributed to that loan , according to bloomberg data . as
lead arranger , citigroup likely holds about 10 percent of the
loan , meaning its exposure is about $ 300 million . j . p . morgan
chase ' s share of that is likely less .
bank of america corp . , commerzbank ag and barclays bank plc
are among other enron lenders not listed as creditors .
still , concern that the banks ' losses may exceed forecasts
helped send their shares and bonds lower today .
citigroup shares fell 99 cents to $ 46 . 91 in trading on the
new york stock exchange . citigroup ' s 7 . 25 percent notes due in
2010 fell to 107 28 / 32 from 108 21 / 32 , pushing the yield up 21
basis points to 6 . 18 percent from 5 . 97 percent .
j . p . morgan ' s stock lost $ 1 . 17 to $ 36 . 55 . its 7 . 9 percent
coupon notes due in 2010 fell $ 16 per $ 1 , 000 face amount to 111
3 / 32 , pushing the yield up 23 basis points to 6 . 18 percent from
5 . 95 percent on friday .
bank of new york ' s 7 . 3 percent notes maturing in 2009 fell
about $ 20 per $ 1 , 000 face value to 108 3 / 32 from 110 7 / 32 , traders
said . yield on the debt rose 32 basis points to 6 . 01 percent from
5 . 69 percent . its shares dropped $ 1 . 04 to $ 38 . 20 .
` ` they ' re big numbers , but these are big institutions , ' ' said
greg habeeb , a bond money manager at calvert group , which doesn ' t
own the banks ' securities . ` ` i wouldn ' t be going running out
buying the bonds now , but i don ' t think ( enron losses are ) big
enough to worry about . ' '
- - michael nol , terence flanagan and george stein in the new york
enron corp . to cut 4 , 000 jobs in u . s . , bulk in houston
by christina cheddar
of dow jones newswires
12 / 03 / 2001
dow jones news service
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , dow jones 201 - 938 - 5166 ; christina . cheddar @ dowjones . com
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
pension plans estimating millions lost on enron invest
by christiane bird
of dow jones newswires
12 / 03 / 2001
dow jones news service
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , dow jones 201 - 938 - 2046 ; christiane . bird @ dowjones . com
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
funds liquidate enron bond holdings , see little recourse
by john shipman
of dow jones newswires
12 / 03 / 2001
dow jones news service
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , dow jones 201 - 938 - 5171 ; john . shipman @ dowjones . com
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
eott energy partners not party to enron bankruptcy
12 / 03 / 2001
dow jones news service
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , dow jones dow jones newswires ; 201 - 938 - 5400
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
us energy markets unmoved by enron chapter 11 filing
by kristen mcnamara and jon kamp
of dow jones newswires
12 / 03 / 2001
dow jones energy service
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , dow jones & company , inc . )
new york - ( dow jones ) - u . s . energy markets were largely unmoved monday by enron corp . ' s ( ene ) filing for chapter 11 over the weekend .
energy companies generally maintained their suspensions on trading with enron and were casting a sharper eye on dynegy inc . ( dyn ) , which is being sued by enron for wrongfully terminating its offer to acquire the one - time market leader .
no company was known to have altered its business with dynegy , and many traders showed little concern about enron ' s suit , but companies did say they were monitoring the situation .
major energy trader aquila corp . ( ila ) was trading normally with dynegy but monitoring the situation .
" that situation could change depending on how people evaluate it , " spokesman al butkus said . " it ' s a very fluid situation . "
firstenergy corp . ( fe ) said it was also monitoring dynegy ' s compliance with its credit requirements .
" this is a situation that we ' re following closely , " spokesman ralph dinicola said .
companies continued to do business normally with dynegy , an energy broker said .
prices for north american power and gas weren ' t moved by enron ' s filing , which was widely expected . factors such as weather and longer - term supply fundamentals continued to dominate the power and gas markets .
january gas futures on the new york mercantile exchange closed down 7 . 1 cents monday at $ 2 . 640 per million british thermal units . power prices in the u . s . northeast were also weaker with mild weather forecasts , adequate generation and weak clearing prices . power prices were also lower in the west .
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
dueling enron , dynegy lawsuits start of long battle
by janet whitman
of dow jones newswires
12 / 03 / 2001
dow jones news service
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , dow jones & company , inc . )
new york - ( dow jones ) - dueling lawsuits filed by former merger partners enron corp . ( ene ) and dynegy inc . ( dyn ) are only the beginning of what is sure to a long legal battle , merger and acquisition lawyers predict . at this stage , it ' s far from certain who would win , they add .
" remember the 100 years war that we all studied in history ? , " asks george m . knapp , a partner at law firm squire sanders & dempsey llp . " this will make that look brief . "
concurrent with its bankruptcy filing on sunday , enron filed a lawsuit against dynegy , charging its former suitor had no grounds to terminate their $ 9 billion merger and actually contributed to enron ' s collapse . the suit , which was filed in new york in the same court as the bankruptcy petition , also contends that dynegy has no right to acquire enron ' s valuable pipeline company , northern natural gas co . of omaha , neb .
in a counter suit filed monday in harris county , texas , dynegy seeks immediate control of the northern national pipeline company .
under the terms of the cross - town rivals ' original merger agreement , dynegy received an option to buy the coveted property - even if the merger fell apart - after it injected $ 1 . 5 billion into enron .
now , however , that ' s a matter for the courts to decide .
" this is a kind of lawyers ' paradise , " said tom burnett , president of merger insight , an affiliate of wall street access . " the risk to dynegy is that that contract won ' t hold up to buy the northern natural gas assets . a bankruptcy judge may decide to hold an auction . "
in that event , dynegy would be left with an equity stake in enron .
sensing that the companies are in for long legal battle and that dynegy may not wind up with the pipeline assets , some investors unloaded their dynegy shares , sending the stock price sliding more than 8 % monday to a low of $ 26 . 26 .
copyright ? 2000 dow jones dow industrials down 1 % in late - afternoon trading
by peter edmonston
12 / 03 / 2001
dow jones business news
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , dow jones & company , inc . )
the wall street journal online
stocks retreated monday as conflict in the middle east and a bankruptcy filing by energy giant enron outweighed better - than - expected economic data .
in late - afternoon trading , the dow jones industrial average was down 101 points , or 1 % , to 9751 after trading nearly 150 points lower earlier in the day . the dow industrials fell 22 . 14 points friday .
meanwhile , the nasdaq composite index lost 22 points , or 1 . 1 % , to 1908 . 60 after closing 2 . 68 points lower in the previous session .
other major indexes also declined monday . the standard & poor ' s 500 - stock index dropped 9 . 60 to 1129 . 90 , the russell 2000 index fell 2 . 80 to 458 , and the new york stock exchange composite index shed four to 575 . 20 .
bonds turned higher in choppy trading . the dollar strengthened against the yen and the euro .
concerns over the fallout from the weekend ' s suicide bombings in israel damped any beneficial effects from economic reports that exceeded wall street ' s expectations .
" the events in israel have created a lot of uncertainty , " said peter coolidge , senior equity trader at brean murray & co . " that more than counteracts any positive news on the economic front . "
at least 25 people were killed over the weekend in attacks by palestinian suicide bombers in jerusalem and the northern israeli port city of haifa . on monday , israel fired nine missiles near palestinian leader yasser arafat ' s headquarters in gaza city in an apparent retaliation .
the violence overseas detracted from some fairly upbeat readings on the u . s . economy , including a report from the commerce department that consumer spending rose by a record 2 . 9 % in october . robust spending on cars and other big - ticket items contributed to the reading ' s largest jump since 1959 , when the data series began . the previous record had been a 2 . 6 % increase in september 1987 .
personal income was virtually unchanged for the second month in a row , roughly in line with economists ' forecasts .
the commerce department also surprised economists by reporting a 1 . 9 % increase in total construction spending for october . forecasts had that figure falling by 0 . 5 % . september construction spending was revised to show a 0 . 7 % drop from the 0 . 4 % decline previously reported .
meanwhile , a closely watched index of manufacturing activity rose more than expected in november . the national association of purchasing management reported monday that its purchasing managers index rose to 44 . 5 last month from 39 . 8 in october . economists have been forecasting the pmi would rise to 42 .
a pmi reading of 42 . 7 is considered the threshold between expansion and contraction in the wider economy . so november ' s pmi of 44 . 5 suggests that the economy is growing , albeit slowly .
last week , the national bureau of economic research formally declared that the country had entered a recession back in march , ending the longest period of economic expansion in u . s . history . the government reported that total economic activity fell at an annual rate of 1 . 1 % in the july - september quarter .
against this backdrop , analysts called the latest napm data encouraging . " after absorbing last month ' s aftershock of the terrorist attacks , the manufacturing sector showed surprising resilience in november , " norbert ore , director of the survey , said in a statement . " the trend is definitely in the right direction , but it is too soon to claim an imminent recovery . based on this report , the sector regained a significant portion of the output lost in october , " mr . ore said .
matthew freedman , an economist at economy . com , said the napm report " shows that the deterioration in manufacturing appears to be slowing quite dramatically . "
but the stronger - than - expected numbers did little to comfort investors , who have been scrutinizing economic readings in recent weeks for signs that the business cycle has hit bottom . the markets are especially interested to see if rising levels of unemployment will put a dent in consumer spending , which is considered a key to keeping the current economic recession a mild one .
most major international markets traded lower monday , but the u . s . economic data helped narrow the losses late in the day in europe . frankfurt ' s xetra dax closed essentially flat and london ' s financial times stock exchange 100 - share finished 0 . 8 % lower . in asia , tokyo ' s nikkei 225 stock average closed with a loss of 3 . 1 % , and hong kong ' s hang seng index dropped 1 . 1 % .
meanwhile , the turmoil surrounding energy - trading giant enron continued over the weekend , as the company filed for bankruptcy protection on sunday . the houston firm simultaneously sued its would - be merger partner dynegy for " not less than $ 10 billion , " accusing it of wrongful termination of their merger pact . news of the impending collapse of enron had weighed heavily on the market last week .
some market participants suggested enron ' s bankruptcy filing - - the largest in u . s . history - - continued to pull stocks lower on monday . but others said it was largely expected and was having little effect on share prices . " it could hurt the markets somewhere down the road , but i haven ' t heard a lot of people talking about it [ monday ] , " said mr . coolidge of brean murray .
enron shares rose 11 cents to 37 cents . dynegy was down nearly 8 % .
financial - services stocks took a hit monday , dragged lower by some negative comments from analysts and fears about exposure to the enron debacle .
shares of brokerage firm morgan stanley sank 6 % after goldman sachs analyst richard strauss pulled it from his recommended list and cut his rating on the stock to " market perform " from " market outperform . " mr . strauss said that the 60 % surge in morgan stanley ' s shares since sept . 20 has made it expensive compared to its peers .
citigroup , a component of the dow jones industrials , declined nearly 2 . 7 % and j . p . morgan fell 3 . 8 % . the two companies advised on the failed merger between enron and dynegy and now find themselves among enron ' s largest unsecured creditors .
automotive stocks were also trading lower monday as the big auto makers offered up monthly sales results for november . shares of ford motor were down 6 . 1 % on news that it is expected to warn this week that quarterly results will miss forecasts . separately , the company reported a 4 . 4 % increase in total u . s . vehicle sales , helped by 0 % financing offers .
ford rival general motors , which has also been offering generous financing plans to lure buyers , reported a 13 . 3 % jump in car and truck sales from a year ago . shares of gm fell 1 . 4 % .
in major u . s . market action :
stocks fell . on the big board , where 923 . 7 million shares traded , 1 , 804 stocks fell and 1 , 291 rose . on the nasdaq , 1 . 17 billion shares changed hands .
bonds rose . the 10 - year treasury note rose more than 1 / 4 point , or $ 2 . 50 for each $ 1 , 000 invested . the yield , which moves inversely to price , fell to 4 . 71 % . the 30 - year bond added more than 3 / 8 point to yield 5 . 26 % .
the dollar strengthened . it bought 123 . 93 yen and traded at 89 . 14 cents to the euro , compared with 123 . 44 yen and 89 . 65 cents late friday in new york .
copyright ( c ) 2001 dow jones & company , inc .
all rights reserved .
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
dueling enron , dynegy lawsuits start of long battle
by janet whitman
of dow jones newswires
12 / 03 / 2001
dow jones news service
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , dow jones & company , inc . )
new york - ( dow jones ) - dueling lawsuits filed by former merger partners enron corp . ( ene ) and dynegy inc . ( dyn ) are only the beginning of what is sure to a long legal battle , merger and acquisition lawyers predict . at this stage , it ' s far from certain who would win , they add .
" remember the 100 years war that we all studied in history ? , " asks george m . knapp , a partner at law firm squire sanders & dempsey llp . " this will make that look brief . "
concurrent with its bankruptcy filing on sunday , enron filed a lawsuit against dynegy , charging its former suitor had no grounds to terminate their $ 9 billion merger and actually contributed to enron ' s collapse . the suit , which was filed in new york in the same court as the bankruptcy petition , also contends that dynegy has no right to acquire enron ' s valuable pipeline company , northern natural gas co . of omaha , neb .
in a counter suit filed monday in harris county , texas , dynegy seeks immediate control of the northern national pipeline company .
under the terms of the cross - town rivals ' original merger agreement , dynegy received an option to buy the coveted property - even if the merger fell apart - after it injected $ 1 . 5 billion into enron .
now , however , that ' s a matter for the courts to decide .
" this is a kind of lawyers ' paradise , " said tom burnett , president of merger insight , an affiliate of wall street access . " the risk to dynegy is that that contract won ' t hold up to buy the northern natural gas assets . a bankruptcy judge may decide to hold an auction . "
in that event , dynegy would be left with an equity stake in enron .
sensing that the companies are in for long legal battle and that dynegy may not wind up with the pipeline assets , some investors unloaded their dynegy shares , sending the stock price sliding more than 8 % monday to a low of $ 26 . 26 .
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
ferc chair sees enron fall fostering market transparency
by mark golden
of dow jones newswires
12 / 03 / 2001
dow jones energy service
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , dow jones 201 - 938 - 4604 ; mark . golden @ dowjones . com
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
in the money : enron ' s bankruptcy filing was a rush job
by michael rapoport
12 / 03 / 2001
dow jones news service
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , dow jones 201 - 938 - 5976 ; michael . rapoport @ dowjones . com
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
usa : enron says about 4 , 000 workers to be laid off .
12 / 03 / 2001
reuters english news service
( c ) reuters limited 2001 .
houston , dec 3 ( reuters ) - shattered energy trader enron corp . will lay off about 4 , 000 employees as part of a cost - cutting move in the wake of its bankruptcy filing , a spokesman said on monday .
" we ' re planning about 4 , 000 job cuts , most from houston , " spokesman mark palmer said . some 7 , 500 people are employed in the company ' s houston head office .
enron capped a dramatic fall from the heights of the energy world on sunday , filing the biggest bankruptcy case in u . s . history . the assets involved total $ 49 . 8 billion , easily dwarfing the $ 35 . 9 billion held by texaco at the time of its 1987 bankruptcy .
sources said enron ' s massive computer network was being shut off , floor by floor , and leaders of business units informed their employees that they were to go home for the day and await notice of their future with the company .
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
usa : u . s . house energy panel sets meetings on enron .
12 / 03 / 2001
reuters english news service
( c ) reuters limited 2001 .
washington , dec 3 ( reuters ) - a u . s . congressional panel said on monday it had scheduled meetings with representatives of the securities exchange commission , auditing firm arthur andersen and enron corp . to explore the energy giant ' s rapid disintegration .
rep . billy tauzin , chairman of the house energy and commerce committee , has directed his staff to meet with the sec , enron financial auditor arthur andersen and top enron executives , a panel spokesman told reuters .
" the committee will be moving aggressively to pin down what went wrong and what , if anything , congress can do to prevent this type of thing from happening again , " a spokesman for the louisiana republican said .
committee staff will meet with sec ' s head of enforcement and general counsel on tuesday and with top representatives from arthur andersen on wednesday , the spokesman said .
on thursday , three house energy committee staffers will travel to houston to meet with top enron officials " to begin laying the groundwork for a hearing , " the staffer said .
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
usa : enron bankruptcy judge heard more high - profile cases .
12 / 03 / 2001
reuters english news service
( c ) reuters limited 2001 .
new york , dec 3 ( reuters ) - judge arthur gonzalez , who will hear the bankruptcy protection case of enron corp . , is a veteran of several high - profile cases , including this year ' s chapter 11 filing by appliance maker sunbeam corp .
" they ' re lucky to have him , " said one lawyer who has represented a company that appeared before gonzalez in u . s . bankruptcy court for the southern district of new york .
the lawyer , who requested anonymity , said gonzalez was viewed as " a very fair judge .
" he is extremely deliberate , very hard - working and very thorough , " he told reuters .
" i don ' t think there was a single hearing at which he had not read all the pleadings . other judges are more laissez faire and some don ' t read all the pleadings , preferring to just ask questions , " the lawyer said . " judge gonzalez makes careful decisions . "
asked if that meant gonzalez was inclined to favor a company petitioning for bankruptcy protection , he said : " well , there are certain judges you would prefer not to have . "
gonzalez , who was appointed to the federal bankruptcy court in new york in 1995 , has recently been hearing the case of sunbeam , which filed for chapter 11 protection this year after questions about its accounting .
in may , federal securities regulators accused former top executives at the appliance maker - including former chief executive albert " chainsaw al " dunlap - of financial fraud that cost investors billions of dollars .
last week , gonzalez postponed a hearing on sunbeam ' s second amended plan of reorganization - which was to be heard on tuesday - to next march 19 .
coincidentally in both cases , in which the company ' s accounting is central , the accounting firm arthur andersen was auditor for sunbeam and also enron .
gonzalez also oversaw the 1998 bankruptcy filing of livent inc . , the canadian theater - production company that collapsed amid major accounting irregularities .
last year , gonzalez was on the bench for the case of iridium llc , a satellite telephone service , which entered the history books as one of the costliest corporate fiascoes of all time .
the washington - based company cut off telephone service to its 55 , 000 customers as a prelude to court - ordered liquidation . iridium ' s last act was to " de - orbit " or ultimately burn up its constellation of 66 satellites . the network has been reported to have cost $ 5 billion to $ 7 billion .
gonzalez cleared iridium to spend $ 8 . 3 million to start winding up its business while selling remaining earth - bound assets , including ground stations .
last year , he was also in charge of the case involving u . s . media holdings inc . and its golden turtle press inc . unit which filed chapter 11 petitions .
this year , gonzalez has been hearing the chapter 11 case of insurance company reliance group holdings inc . and also australia ' s collapsed hih insurance ltd .
gonzalez received a degree in accounting from new york ' s fordham university in 1969 and a master ' s degree in education from brooklyn college in 1974 .
he got his law degree at fordham university ' s law school in 1982 and llm in taxation in 1990 from new york university law school . after a spell in private practice , he was appointed assistant u . s . trustee in the southern district of new york in 1991 and u . s . trustee for the second circuit in 1993 .
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
usa : us northwest natural seeks to buy portland general .
by chris baltimore
12 / 03 / 2001
reuters english news service
( c ) reuters limited 2001 .
washington , dec 3 ( reuters ) - northwest natural gas co said monday it asked approval from federal energy regulators to buy portland general electric co . from enron corp for $ 1 . 8 billion .
northwest expects to soon file a similar request with the u . s . securities and exchange commission , a company spokesman said .
the purchase is unrelated to the status of enron ' s northern natural gas pipeline , to which dynegy inc . is claiming rights after canceling a bid to purchase enron last week .
portland , ore . - based northwest natural gas is a local natural gas distribution company that serves about 530 , 000 customers in oregon and washington .
it is oregon ' s largest natural gas utility , while portland general is the state ' s biggest electric utility .
northwest filed for approval with the federal energy regulatory commission ( ferc ) on friday , after a similar application with the oregon public utilities commission on nov . 28 , with a response requested by may 15 , 2002 .
the oregon commission ' s " watershed approval " would allow northwest to take operational control of portland general by the end of 2002 , said northwest spokesman jim boehlke .
northwest said it wants ferc to act on its request by feb . 20 , 2002 .
enron ' s declaration of bankruptcy over the weekend " could complicate things " for northwest ' s plans for portland general , boehlke said . but northwest is " going forward ( with the purchase ) without regard for what it going on in the enron bankruptcy proceedings , " he said .
a bankruptcy court is likely to look favorably on northwest ' s purchase , boehlke said , because it will give enron cash to pay debts . " we ' re about to give ( enron ) $ 1 . 55 billion dollars in cash . hopefully a bankruptcy court would want that to go forward , " he said .
the deal also includes $ 50 million in common stock and $ 200 million in special preferred stock , he said .
portland general serves 733 , 000 oregon customers , owns 26 , 000 miles of transmission and distribution lines and 2 , 015 megawatts of generation . one megawatt is enough to power roughly 1 , 000 homes .
after purchasing portland general in 1997 , enron agreed to sell it to sierra pacific resources corp . for $ 2 . 1 billion in 1999 .
but that deal was abandoned in april after regulators in california and nevada barred sierra pacific from divesting generation assets in those states , which it needed to finance its purchase .
state regulators took action after a power shortage in the wester united states sent prices skyrocketing and made states rethink plans to deregulate their electricity markets , including asset divestitures . that allowed northwest to move ahead with its own purchase plans .
ferc will rule on whether the combination has an adverse impact on competition , and northwest does not expect ferc or other regulators to raise substantive issues , boehlke said .
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
enron field moniker uncertain in wake of bankruptcy
by mark babineck
associated press writer
12 / 03 / 2001
associated press newswires
copyright 2001 . the associated press . all rights reserved .
houston ( ap ) - while enron corp . is current on its payments to keep the beleaguered company ' s name on houston ' s ballpark , it ' s unclear whether 2 - year - old enron field might have an identity crisis soon .
club officials , who did not immediately return calls monday , have said that as long as enron continues to exist and maintains regular payments on its 30 - year , $ 100 million commitment , the downtown stadium will stay enron field .
" we were saddened by the recent events , " astros president pam gardner said last week after enron ' s emergency buyout suitor , rival dynegy inc . , backed out of the deal when enron ' s credit rating was lowered to junk status .
" it ' s a sad situation for the enron employees and the city of houston . but we have a contract with enron that is current and as long as that is the case , the ballpark will continue to be called enron field . "
enron has filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy in a manhattan court , meaning it wants to remain in business and reorganize to settle $ 31 . 1 billion in debts . in the meantime , the court will oversee enron ' s business operations and expenditures , including the stadium deal .
enron ' s fall , one of the largest bankruptcies in history , is the latest instance of a stadium name holder hitting the skids . the twa dome in st . louis became the dome at america ' s center when the storied airline went belly up and was bought by american airlines this year .
psinet stadium in baltimore has kept its moniker even as its namesake company wades through bankruptcy . some others that have named stadiums , like 3 com corp . and cmgi inc . , are wading in red ink .
dean bonham , whose bonham group negotiates such deals both for venues and sponsoring companies , said enron ' s downfall will affect the market .
" the most notable and obvious effect is that our clients , as well as other clients in the industry , are going to be extremely cautious when they enter naming rights discussions , " bonham said monday .
however , even due diligence might not be enough . bonham said enron , which ranked seventh in the fortune 500 last year with $ 101 billion in revenue , must have appeared rock solid when they signed with the astros .
bonham even noted that just a few weeks ago , right before a stunning string of negative announcements drove enron ' s stock price well below that of a bag of peanuts , he was involved in talks with enron to name a major league soccer stadium .
teams and companies must both make sure their contracts guard against all eventualities , including bankruptcies , mergers and " image - association " issues that might make arrangements unattractive .
" our clients have the absolute right at their option to cancel the agreement , " bonham said .
- - -
on the net :
houston astros : http : / / www . astros . com
enron : http : / / www . enron . com
bonham group : http : / / www . bonham . com
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
eott energy partners , l . p . not a party to enron bankruptcy
12 / 03 / 2001
pr newswire
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , pr newswire )
houston , dec . 3 / prnewswire / - - eott energy partners , l . p . ( nyse : eot ) confirmed today that its general partner was not among the companies included in enron corp . ' s voluntary petition for bankruptcy protection filed yesterday . additionally , eott energy partners , l . p . , which is a publicly traded limited partnership , and its subsidiary partnerships have not filed for bankruptcy protection .
in friday ' s press release , eott disclosed among other things that it has entered into an interim credit facility with its primary lender , standard chartered , to replace its existing facility with enron corp . the interim facility provides for the immediate issuance through march 2002 of up to $ 150 million of letters of credit . reference is made to friday ' s press release and to eott ' s most recent form 10 - q filed with the securities and exchange commission for further information .
eott energy partners , l . p . is a major independent marketer and transporter of crude oil in north america . eott transports most of the lease crude oil it purchases via pipeline , which includes 8 , 200 miles of active intrastate and interstate pipeline and gathering systems . in addition , eott owns and operates a hydrocarbon processing plant and a natural gas liquids storage and pipeline grid system . eott energy corp . , a wholly - owned subsidiary of enron corp . , is the general partner of eott with headquarters in houston . eott ' s internet address is www . eott . com . the partnership ' s common units are traded on the new york stock exchange under the ticker symbol " eot " .
make your opinion count - click here
/ contact : media relations , wade gates of burson marsteller , + 1 - 214 - 224 - 8408 , for eott energy partners , l . p . / 14 : 14 est
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
enron mentions
enron seeks money for trading unit as customers flee ( updatel )
bloomberg , 12 / 03 / 01
enron says it has $ 1 . 5 bln in bankruptcy financing ( correct )
bloomberg , 12 / 03 / 01
enron acquisition bid announced by standard power ( update 3 )
bloomberg , 12 / 03 / 01
enron to cut 4 , 000 jobs at headquarters in houston ( update 6 )
bloomberg , 12 / 03 / 01
dynegy sues enron in texas for natural - gas pipeline ( updatel )
bloomberg , 12 / 03 / 01
enron insiders sold more than $ 1 . 2 billion in stock since 1990
bloomberg , 12 / 03 / 01
u . s . banks ' enron debt is overstated , analysts say ( updatel )
bloomberg , 12 / 03 / 01
enron corp . to cut 4 , 000 jobs in u . s . , bulk in houston
dow jones news service , 12 / 03 / 01
pension plans estimating millions lost on enron invest
dow jones news service , 12 / 03 / 01
funds liquidate enron bond holdings , see little recourse
dow jones news service , 12 / 03 / 01
eott energy partners not party to enron bankruptcy
dow jones news service , 12 / 03 / 01
us energy markets unmoved by enron chapter 11 filing
dow jones energy service , 12 / 03 / 01
dueling enron , dynegy lawsuits start of long battle
dow jones news service , 12 / 03 / 01
stocks slide on worries about middle east , enron ; dow industrials down 1 % in late - afternoon trading
dow jones business news , 12 / 03 / 01
dueling enron , dynegy lawsuits start of long battle
dow jones news service , 12 / 03 / 01
ferc chair sees enron fall fostering market transparency
dow jones energy service , 12 / 03 / 01
in the money : enron ' s bankruptcy filing was a rush job
dow jones news service , 12 / 03 / 01
usa : enron says about 4 , 000 workers to be laid off .
reuters english news service , 12 / 03 / 01
usa : u . s . house energy panel sets meetings on enron .
reuters english news service , 12 / 03 / 01
usa : enron bankruptcy judge heard more high - profile cases .
reuters english news service , 12 / 03 / 01
usa : us northwest natural seeks to buy portland general .
reuters english news service , 12 / 03 / 01
enron field moniker uncertain in wake of bankruptcy
associated press newswires , 12 / 03 / 01
eott energy partners , l . p . not a party to enron bankruptcy
pr newswire , 12 / 03 / 01
enron seeks money for trading unit as customers flee ( updatel )
2001 - 12 - 03 18 : 11 ( new york )
enron seeks money for trading unit as customers flee ( updatel )
( adds traders ' comments in 19 th - 23 rd paragraphs and adds
details about pipelines stopping shipments in 20 th paragraph . )
houston , dec . 3 ( bloomberg ) - - enron corp . is courting
investors to revive its crippled trading business , even as it
loses customers who fear the company will be unable to make good
on its obligations .
energy companies such as mirant corp . and aquila inc . have
taken business elsewhere . at enrononline , the web site that once
handled $ 2 . 8 billion in commodity transactions a day , trading has
plunged , raising doubts that enron will be able to rescue the
trading business .
enron , once the largest energy trader , sought protection
yesterday from creditors in a bankruptcy that was the largest in
u . s . history . the company is in talks with financial institutions
to fund the wholesale trading business ` ` under new ownership , ' '
chief operating officer greg whalley said in a statement .
` ` until we ' ve seen the fallout from this bankruptcy , i don ' t
think you ' re going to find a lot of entities that are prepared to
trade with ' ' enron , said daniel gordon , head of commodities
trading at hagerstown , maryland - based allegheny energy inc . , which
owns utilities in five states . ` ` anyone who thinks this will be a
quick bankruptcy is deluding themselves . ' '
houston - based enron has lost $ 26 billion in market value
since mid - october , when the company restated $ 586 million in
earnings and disclosed that its executives may have profited from
enron ' s dealings with affiliated partnerships that bought enron
assets .
enron , which was the buyer or seller on every transaction on
its web site , handles only a fraction of the trades it once did .
the company said today it will fire 4 , 000 workers in houston .
` difficult to resurrect '
the wholesale trading business of enrononline , which had been
a valuable property , ` ` has for all practical purposes ceased
operation and in a post - bankruptcy scenario , may in fact be
difficult to resurrect , ' ' fitch inc . , a chicago - based firm that
rates corporate credit , said in a report today .
trading has surged in markets that compete with enron ,
including the new york mercantile exchange and intercontinental
exchange inc . dynegy inc . chief executive officer chuck watson
said his company ' s energy - trading web site has seen increased
traffic .
` ` enrononline will just disappear , ' ' said peter fusaro ,
president of global change associates inc . , a consulting firm in
new york . enron ' s portfolio of trades ` ` is evaporating ' ' and ` ` is
replaceable ' ' with competing electronic trading platforms .
dynegy ' s watson said on a conference call with analysts and
investors that his company would try to expand in europe , where
enron was the dominant energy trader . enron said friday it would
fire more than 1 , 000 workers in europe .
shutdown
enrononline shut down wednesday after dynegy canceled its
plans to buy enron , depriving enron of the cash it needed to meet
its obligations and all but ensuring the company would be forced
to seek protection from its creditors .
later in the week , the site was offering trading in 472
commodity products , a third of its usual offerings , according to
company officials . on thursday , the site logged 825 trades , down
from the normal amount of about 5 , 000 .
` ` we ' re actively trading , ' ' enron spokesman eric thode said
today , declining to elaborate .
` ` there may still be trading going on , but it ' s primarily to
unwind positions , ' ' fitch credit analyst ralph pellecchia said .
` ` it ' s certainly not new growth or for profitability . for all
intents and purposes , enron ' s horsepower , its earnings - generating
machine , has been effectively shut down . ' '
needs capital
enron declined to name the ` ` leading financial institutions ' '
it is in talks with to provide new capital for the trading
business .
` ` if these discussions are successful , they could result in
the creation of a new trading entity with a strong and
unencumbered balance sheet , ' ' whalley said . ` ` we understand that
it may take time for counterparties to resume normal trading
levels with this entity , but we are confident that this business
can be put back on a solid footing . ' '
enron ' s top creditors include citigroup inc . ' s citibank and
j . p . morgan chase & co . the blackstone group is helping enron with
its financial restructuring .
a revival of enron ' s trading business isn ' t likely anytime
soon , analysts said .
it may take ` ` months to years , if ever , ' ' said david chang ,
manager of natural gas trading at bank of america na . in the
meantime , enron has ` ` alienated a lot of its suppliers and
customers , ' ' he said . ` ` it would be difficult for ' ' enron to come
back .
stopped shipping
nisource inc . , which operates 16 , 000 miles of gas pipelines ,
stopped shipping enron ' s gas on saturday because of credit
concerns , company spokesman kelly merritt said . williams cos . ,
which controls 27 , 000 miles of pipes , stopped shipping enron ' s gas
last week .
` ` enron has lost all credibility , ' ' fusaro said .
in the meantime , some traders that had become accustomed to
the ease and speed of online transactions are finding it difficult
to adjust .
kevin cokinos , co - owner and vice president at cokinos energy
corp . in houston , said he has had to rely on his old network of
telephone brokers for price quotes rather than enron ' s web site .
` ` it ' s hard to do as many deals because you ' re spending so
much more time on each one , ' ' said cokinos , whose company trades
about 500 million cubic feet of gas a day . ` ` we hope somebody
picks up enrononline so it will come back the way it operated
before . but that might be kind of tough . ' '
- - bradley keoun in the new york newsroom ( 212 ) 318 - 2310 or at
enron says it has $ 1 . 5 bln in bankruptcy financing ( correct )
2001 - 12 - 03 17 : 55 ( new york )
enron says it has $ 1 . 5 bln in bankruptcy financing ( correct )
( corrects second paragraph say $ 250 million is part of the
$ 1 . 5 billion in financing , not an additional loan . for more enron
news , see { top nrg } . )
new york , dec . 3 ( bloomberg ) - - enron corp . , which yesterday
filed the biggest bankruptcy case in u . s . history , told a judge in
new york that it has $ 1 . 5 billion in bankruptcy financing that
will be provided by a bank group led by j . p . morgan chase & co .
the energy trader also asked u . s . bankruptcy judge arthur
gonzalez for permission to draw $ 250 million of the financing
immediately to keep its trading and other operations running while
it tries to reorganize .
- - jeff st . onge and jim polson in new york with andy pratt in
enron acquisition bid announced by standard power ( update 3 )
2001 - 12 - 03 17 : 05 ( new york )
enron acquisition bid announced by standard power ( update 3 )
( adds comment from enron spokeswoman in sixth paragraph )
washington , dec . 3 ( bloomberg ) - - enron corp . , once the
seventh - largest company in the nation , has become the takeover
target of a former natural gas marketer who wants to replace
management and revitalize the bankrupt energy business .
richard ryan , chief executive of an oak brook , illinois ,
company called standard power skilling , who stunned investors when he
quit in august six months after becoming ceo , picked up $ 76 . 1
million .
employees and investors have sued enron , accusing executives
of selling shares while touting the company . enron stock , which
traded as high as $ 90 in august 2000 , is all but worthless after
the company wrote off more than $ 1 billion of investments and
disclosed a $ 1 . 2 billion loss in shareholder equity because of its
dealings with affiliated partnerships .
` ` they caused us to lose our money , and they made money , ' '
said steve lacey , an emergency dispatcher for portland general
electric , enron ' s oregon - based electric utility unit .
lay didn ' t return telephones calls seeking comment and
skilling , through a spokesman , declined to comment .
lacey , like many of portland general ' s 2 , 700 employees ,
bought enron shares for his 401 k investment plan . the stock , which
he planned on using for his retirement , closed today at 40 cents .
lacey filed suit against enron in houston on nov . 20 , claiming the
company prohibited employees from moving shares out of the
investment plan as the stock fell in october .
billions owed
in its bankruptcy filing , houston - based enron and 13 of its
units listed assets of $ 49 . 8 billion and debts of $ 31 . 2 billion .
it owes billions to creditors such as citigroup inc . , bank of new
york co . , j . p . morgan chase & co . , duke energy corp . and williams
cos .
the insider selling at enron is high for an energy company .
insiders at exxonmobil corp . , the biggest publicly traded oil
company , sold $ 410 million of stock during the same period ,
according to washington service , which compiles records from the
u . s . securities and exchange commission .
those sales pale in comparison with some computer - related
technology companies . microsoft corp . insiders , among the most
active sellers at any u . s . company , sold 367 . 2 million shares
worth $ 31 . 4 billion since 1990 , records show .
in the past year , microsoft insiders sold 3 . 6 million shares
for $ 222 million .
biggest seller
in all , 60 officers , directors and trusts they control sold
enron stock during the past decade .
lou pai , former chairman of enron ' s newpower holdings inc . ,
made the most from selling enron shares during the past decade .
pai sold 3 . 89 million shares for $ 270 . 3 million . most of pai ' s
sales were made last year at prices ranging from $ 50 . 52 to $ 78 . 17
a share . pai couldn ' t be reached immediately for comment .
ken harrison , former chairman and ceo of portland general ,
sold almost 992 , 000 shares for $ 78 million . enron bought the
utility in 1997 for $ 3 . 1 billion in stock and debt . harrison also
couldn ' t be reached immediately for comment .
` ` it would seem that insiders had some advance warning that
there were better opportunities , ' ' said david coleman , editor of
vickers weekly insider report .
the selling among enron insiders outweighed the buying during
the past decade . in all , insiders bought almost 488 , 000 shares ,
paying a total of $ 20 . 7 million . the last executive to buy enron ' s
stock : former chief financial officer andrew fastow , who bought
10 , 000 shares on aug . 16 at $ 36 . 98 , according to the washington
service .
fastow was ousted in late october after the sec began an
investigation into enron ' s accounting and its use of investment
partnerships . enron restated earnings for almost five years in
october , wiping out $ 586 million in profits , as it accounted for
losses from the partnerships .
fastow couldn ' t be reached for comment .
- - loren steffy in dallas ( 214 ) 954 - 9453 or steffy @ bloomberg . net
u . s . banks ' enron debt is overstated , analysts say ( updatel )
2001 - 12 - 03 16 : 54 ( new york )
u . s . banks ' enron debt is overstated , analysts say ( updatel )
( updates with closing stock prices . )
new york , dec . 3 ( bloomberg ) - - enron corp . says it owes
citigroup inc . , j . p . morgan chase & co . and bank of new york co .
$ 7 . 55 billion in the largest bankruptcy case in u . s . history .
analysts say the amount owed the banks may be less than half that .
here ' s where they differ .
enron yesterday said in court papers it owed thousands of
creditors $ 31 . 2 billion in loans , unpaid bills and other debts .
citigroup , the biggest creditor , is owed $ 3 billion stemming from
a loan it arranged last year , enron said .
still , the banks probably hold only a fraction of the debts
enron says they ' re owed . that ' s because banks routinely sell parts
of loans to other lenders as a way to disperse risk . banks also
are listed as the holders of bonds and other securities that in
fact are owned by investors . the banks are listed as the creditors
in enron ' s papers .
` ` it ' s very difficult to piece together the reality , ' ' said
robert napoli , an analyst at abn amro inc . who owns citigroup
shares . ` ` they ' ve syndicated out a portion of the loan and they
could have hedged the credit risk through derivatives . ' '
citigroup , the largest u . s . financial services company , is
probably owed $ 1 billion at most , analysts say , and much of that
is backed by collateral such as gas pipelines , on which it should
be able to collect .
the company ' s profit may be lowered by between $ 250 million
and $ 500 million before taxes , or between 3 cents and 5 cents a
share after taxes , as a result of its involvement with enron , said
napoli , who recommends investors buy citigroup shares . citigroup
earned $ 2 . 08 a share in the first nine months of the year .
hurting earnings
j . p . morgan chase - - which enron says is owed $ 2 . 1 billion - -
says its exposure totals about $ 900 million - - $ 500 million
unsecured , and $ 400 million backed by collateral .
that exposure could result in a 15 - cent decline in earnings
per share , said goldman , sachs & co . analyst richard strauss . the
second - largest u . s . bank earned $ 1 . 54 a share so far this year .
j . p . morgan chase acts as a representative for holders of
enron bonds , so while the company is listed by enron as a creditor
on $ 1 . 9 billion of bonds , it may not be owed a cent on that debt .
enron ' s $ 2 . 45 billion debt to bank of new york may work in
much the same way , said lehman brothers analyst henry dickson . he
estimated the bank is owed about $ 50 million .
much of j . p . morgan ' s exposure is tied to citigroup ' s $ 3
billion loan to enron , a credit enron doesn ' t even mention . a
syndicate of at least five other banks - - including j . p . morgan
chase - - contributed to that loan , according to bloomberg data . as
lead arranger , citigroup likely holds about 10 percent of the
loan , meaning its exposure is about $ 300 million . j . p . morgan
chase ' s share of that is likely less .
bank of america corp . , commerzbank ag and barclays bank plc
are among other enron lenders not listed as creditors .
still , concern that the banks ' losses may exceed forecasts
helped send their shares and bonds lower today .
citigroup shares fell 99 cents to $ 46 . 91 in trading on the
new york stock exchange . citigroup ' s 7 . 25 percent notes due in
2010 fell to 107 28 / 32 from 108 21 / 32 , pushing the yield up 21
basis points to 6 . 18 percent from 5 . 97 percent .
j . p . morgan ' s stock lost $ 1 . 17 to $ 36 . 55 . its 7 . 9 percent
coupon notes due in 2010 fell $ 16 per $ 1 , 000 face amount to 111
3 / 32 , pushing the yield up 23 basis points to 6 . 18 percent from
5 . 95 percent on friday .
bank of new york ' s 7 . 3 percent notes maturing in 2009 fell
about $ 20 per $ 1 , 000 face value to 108 3 / 32 from 110 7 / 32 , traders
said . yield on the debt rose 32 basis points to 6 . 01 percent from
5 . 69 percent . its shares dropped $ 1 . 04 to $ 38 . 20 .
` ` they ' re big numbers , but these are big institutions , ' ' said
greg habeeb , a bond money manager at calvert group , which doesn ' t
own the banks ' securities . ` ` i wouldn ' t be going running out
buying the bonds now , but i don ' t think ( enron losses are ) big
enough to worry about . ' '
- - michael nol , terence flanagan and george stein in the new york
enron corp . to cut 4 , 000 jobs in u . s . , bulk in houston
by christina cheddar
of dow jones newswires
12 / 03 / 2001
dow jones news service
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , dow jones 201 - 938 - 5166 ; christina . cheddar @ dowjones . com
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
pension plans estimating millions lost on enron invest
by christiane bird
of dow jones newswires
12 / 03 / 2001
dow jones news service
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , dow jones 201 - 938 - 2046 ; christiane . bird @ dowjones . com
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
funds liquidate enron bond holdings , see little recourse
by john shipman
of dow jones newswires
12 / 03 / 2001
dow jones news service
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , dow jones 201 - 938 - 5171 ; john . shipman @ dowjones . com
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
eott energy partners not party to enron bankruptcy
12 / 03 / 2001
dow jones news service
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , dow jones dow jones newswires ; 201 - 938 - 5400
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
us energy markets unmoved by enron chapter 11 filing
by kristen mcnamara and jon kamp
of dow jones newswires
12 / 03 / 2001
dow jones energy service
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , dow jones & company , inc . )
new york - ( dow jones ) - u . s . energy markets were largely unmoved monday by enron corp . ' s ( ene ) filing for chapter 11 over the weekend .
energy companies generally maintained their suspensions on trading with enron and were casting a sharper eye on dynegy inc . ( dyn ) , which is being sued by enron for wrongfully terminating its offer to acquire the one - time market leader .
no company was known to have altered its business with dynegy , and many traders showed little concern about enron ' s suit , but companies did say they were monitoring the situation .
major energy trader aquila corp . ( ila ) was trading normally with dynegy but monitoring the situation .
" that situation could change depending on how people evaluate it , " spokesman al butkus said . " it ' s a very fluid situation . "
firstenergy corp . ( fe ) said it was also monitoring dynegy ' s compliance with its credit requirements .
" this is a situation that we ' re following closely , " spokesman ralph dinicola said .
companies continued to do business normally with dynegy , an energy broker said .
prices for north american power and gas weren ' t moved by enron ' s filing , which was widely expected . factors such as weather and longer - term supply fundamentals continued to dominate the power and gas markets .
january gas futures on the new york mercantile exchange closed down 7 . 1 cents monday at $ 2 . 640 per million british thermal units . power prices in the u . s . northeast were also weaker with mild weather forecasts , adequate generation and weak clearing prices . power prices were also lower in the west .
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
dueling enron , dynegy lawsuits start of long battle
by janet whitman
of dow jones newswires
12 / 03 / 2001
dow jones news service
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , dow jones & company , inc . )
new york - ( dow jones ) - dueling lawsuits filed by former merger partners enron corp . ( ene ) and dynegy inc . ( dyn ) are only the beginning of what is sure to a long legal battle , merger and acquisition lawyers predict . at this stage , it ' s far from certain who would win , they add .
" remember the 100 years war that we all studied in history ? , " asks george m . knapp , a partner at law firm squire sanders & dempsey llp . " this will make that look brief . "
concurrent with its bankruptcy filing on sunday , enron filed a lawsuit against dynegy , charging its former suitor had no grounds to terminate their $ 9 billion merger and actually contributed to enron ' s collapse . the suit , which was filed in new york in the same court as the bankruptcy petition , also contends that dynegy has no right to acquire enron ' s valuable pipeline company , northern natural gas co . of omaha , neb .
in a counter suit filed monday in harris county , texas , dynegy seeks immediate control of the northern national pipeline company .
under the terms of the cross - town rivals ' original merger agreement , dynegy received an option to buy the coveted property - even if the merger fell apart - after it injected $ 1 . 5 billion into enron .
now , however , that ' s a matter for the courts to decide .
" this is a kind of lawyers ' paradise , " said tom burnett , president of merger insight , an affiliate of wall street access . " the risk to dynegy is that that contract won ' t hold up to buy the northern natural gas assets . a bankruptcy judge may decide to hold an auction . "
in that event , dynegy would be left with an equity stake in enron .
sensing that the companies are in for long legal battle and that dynegy may not wind up with the pipeline assets , some investors unloaded their dynegy shares , sending the stock price sliding more than 8 % monday to a low of $ 26 . 26 .
copyright ? 2000 dow jones dow industrials down 1 % in late - afternoon trading
by peter edmonston
12 / 03 / 2001
dow jones business news
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , dow jones & company , inc . )
the wall street journal online
stocks retreated monday as conflict in the middle east and a bankruptcy filing by energy giant enron outweighed better - than - expected economic data .
in late - afternoon trading , the dow jones industrial average was down 101 points , or 1 % , to 9751 after trading nearly 150 points lower earlier in the day . the dow industrials fell 22 . 14 points friday .
meanwhile , the nasdaq composite index lost 22 points , or 1 . 1 % , to 1908 . 60 after closing 2 . 68 points lower in the previous session .
other major indexes also declined monday . the standard & poor ' s 500 - stock index dropped 9 . 60 to 1129 . 90 , the russell 2000 index fell 2 . 80 to 458 , and the new york stock exchange composite index shed four to 575 . 20 .
bonds turned higher in choppy trading . the dollar strengthened against the yen and the euro .
concerns over the fallout from the weekend ' s suicide bombings in israel damped any beneficial effects from economic reports that exceeded wall street ' s expectations .
" the events in israel have created a lot of uncertainty , " said peter coolidge , senior equity trader at brean murray & co . " that more than counteracts any positive news on the economic front . "
at least 25 people were killed over the weekend in attacks by palestinian suicide bombers in jerusalem and the northern israeli port city of haifa . on monday , israel fired nine missiles near palestinian leader yasser arafat ' s headquarters in gaza city in an apparent retaliation .
the violence overseas detracted from some fairly upbeat readings on the u . s . economy , including a report from the commerce department that consumer spending rose by a record 2 . 9 % in october . robust spending on cars and other big - ticket items contributed to the reading ' s largest jump since 1959 , when the data series began . the previous record had been a 2 . 6 % increase in september 1987 .
personal income was virtually unchanged for the second month in a row , roughly in line with economists ' forecasts .
the commerce department also surprised economists by reporting a 1 . 9 % increase in total construction spending for october . forecasts had that figure falling by 0 . 5 % . september construction spending was revised to show a 0 . 7 % drop from the 0 . 4 % decline previously reported .
meanwhile , a closely watched index of manufacturing activity rose more than expected in november . the national association of purchasing management reported monday that its purchasing managers index rose to 44 . 5 last month from 39 . 8 in october . economists have been forecasting the pmi would rise to 42 .
a pmi reading of 42 . 7 is considered the threshold between expansion and contraction in the wider economy . so november ' s pmi of 44 . 5 suggests that the economy is growing , albeit slowly .
last week , the national bureau of economic research formally declared that the country had entered a recession back in march , ending the longest period of economic expansion in u . s . history . the government reported that total economic activity fell at an annual rate of 1 . 1 % in the july - september quarter .
against this backdrop , analysts called the latest napm data encouraging . " after absorbing last month ' s aftershock of the terrorist attacks , the manufacturing sector showed surprising resilience in november , " norbert ore , director of the survey , said in a statement . " the trend is definitely in the right direction , but it is too soon to claim an imminent recovery . based on this report , the sector regained a significant portion of the output lost in october , " mr . ore said .
matthew freedman , an economist at economy . com , said the napm report " shows that the deterioration in manufacturing appears to be slowing quite dramatically . "
but the stronger - than - expected numbers did little to comfort investors , who have been scrutinizing economic readings in recent weeks for signs that the business cycle has hit bottom . the markets are especially interested to see if rising levels of unemployment will put a dent in consumer spending , which is considered a key to keeping the current economic recession a mild one .
most major international markets traded lower monday , but the u . s . economic data helped narrow the losses late in the day in europe . frankfurt ' s xetra dax closed essentially flat and london ' s financial times stock exchange 100 - share finished 0 . 8 % lower . in asia , tokyo ' s nikkei 225 stock average closed with a loss of 3 . 1 % , and hong kong ' s hang seng index dropped 1 . 1 % .
meanwhile , the turmoil surrounding energy - trading giant enron continued over the weekend , as the company filed for bankruptcy protection on sunday . the houston firm simultaneously sued its would - be merger partner dynegy for " not less than $ 10 billion , " accusing it of wrongful termination of their merger pact . news of the impending collapse of enron had weighed heavily on the market last week .
some market participants suggested enron ' s bankruptcy filing - - the largest in u . s . history - - continued to pull stocks lower on monday . but others said it was largely expected and was having little effect on share prices . " it could hurt the markets somewhere down the road , but i haven ' t heard a lot of people talking about it [ monday ] , " said mr . coolidge of brean murray .
enron shares rose 11 cents to 37 cents . dynegy was down nearly 8 % .
financial - services stocks took a hit monday , dragged lower by some negative comments from analysts and fears about exposure to the enron debacle .
shares of brokerage firm morgan stanley sank 6 % after goldman sachs analyst richard strauss pulled it from his recommended list and cut his rating on the stock to " market perform " from " market outperform . " mr . strauss said that the 60 % surge in morgan stanley ' s shares since sept . 20 has made it expensive compared to its peers .
citigroup , a component of the dow jones industrials , declined nearly 2 . 7 % and j . p . morgan fell 3 . 8 % . the two companies advised on the failed merger between enron and dynegy and now find themselves among enron ' s largest unsecured creditors .
automotive stocks were also trading lower monday as the big auto makers offered up monthly sales results for november . shares of ford motor were down 6 . 1 % on news that it is expected to warn this week that quarterly results will miss forecasts . separately , the company reported a 4 . 4 % increase in total u . s . vehicle sales , helped by 0 % financing offers .
ford rival general motors , which has also been offering generous financing plans to lure buyers , reported a 13 . 3 % jump in car and truck sales from a year ago . shares of gm fell 1 . 4 % .
in major u . s . market action :
stocks fell . on the big board , where 923 . 7 million shares traded , 1 , 804 stocks fell and 1 , 291 rose . on the nasdaq , 1 . 17 billion shares changed hands .
bonds rose . the 10 - year treasury note rose more than 1 / 4 point , or $ 2 . 50 for each $ 1 , 000 invested . the yield , which moves inversely to price , fell to 4 . 71 % . the 30 - year bond added more than 3 / 8 point to yield 5 . 26 % .
the dollar strengthened . it bought 123 . 93 yen and traded at 89 . 14 cents to the euro , compared with 123 . 44 yen and 89 . 65 cents late friday in new york .
copyright ( c ) 2001 dow jones & company , inc .
all rights reserved .
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
dueling enron , dynegy lawsuits start of long battle
by janet whitman
of dow jones newswires
12 / 03 / 2001
dow jones news service
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , dow jones & company , inc . )
new york - ( dow jones ) - dueling lawsuits filed by former merger partners enron corp . ( ene ) and dynegy inc . ( dyn ) are only the beginning of what is sure to a long legal battle , merger and acquisition lawyers predict . at this stage , it ' s far from certain who would win , they add .
" remember the 100 years war that we all studied in history ? , " asks george m . knapp , a partner at law firm squire sanders & dempsey llp . " this will make that look brief . "
concurrent with its bankruptcy filing on sunday , enron filed a lawsuit against dynegy , charging its former suitor had no grounds to terminate their $ 9 billion merger and actually contributed to enron ' s collapse . the suit , which was filed in new york in the same court as the bankruptcy petition , also contends that dynegy has no right to acquire enron ' s valuable pipeline company , northern natural gas co . of omaha , neb .
in a counter suit filed monday in harris county , texas , dynegy seeks immediate control of the northern national pipeline company .
under the terms of the cross - town rivals ' original merger agreement , dynegy received an option to buy the coveted property - even if the merger fell apart - after it injected $ 1 . 5 billion into enron .
now , however , that ' s a matter for the courts to decide .
" this is a kind of lawyers ' paradise , " said tom burnett , president of merger insight , an affiliate of wall street access . " the risk to dynegy is that that contract won ' t hold up to buy the northern natural gas assets . a bankruptcy judge may decide to hold an auction . "
in that event , dynegy would be left with an equity stake in enron .
sensing that the companies are in for long legal battle and that dynegy may not wind up with the pipeline assets , some investors unloaded their dynegy shares , sending the stock price sliding more than 8 % monday to a low of $ 26 . 26 .
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
ferc chair sees enron fall fostering market transparency
by mark golden
of dow jones newswires
12 / 03 / 2001
dow jones energy service
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , dow jones 201 - 938 - 4604 ; mark . golden @ dowjones . com
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
in the money : enron ' s bankruptcy filing was a rush job
by michael rapoport
12 / 03 / 2001
dow jones news service
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , dow jones 201 - 938 - 5976 ; michael . rapoport @ dowjones . com
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
usa : enron says about 4 , 000 workers to be laid off .
12 / 03 / 2001
reuters english news service
( c ) reuters limited 2001 .
houston , dec 3 ( reuters ) - shattered energy trader enron corp . will lay off about 4 , 000 employees as part of a cost - cutting move in the wake of its bankruptcy filing , a spokesman said on monday .
" we ' re planning about 4 , 000 job cuts , most from houston , " spokesman mark palmer said . some 7 , 500 people are employed in the company ' s houston head office .
enron capped a dramatic fall from the heights of the energy world on sunday , filing the biggest bankruptcy case in u . s . history . the assets involved total $ 49 . 8 billion , easily dwarfing the $ 35 . 9 billion held by texaco at the time of its 1987 bankruptcy .
sources said enron ' s massive computer network was being shut off , floor by floor , and leaders of business units informed their employees that they were to go home for the day and await notice of their future with the company .
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
usa : u . s . house energy panel sets meetings on enron .
12 / 03 / 2001
reuters english news service
( c ) reuters limited 2001 .
washington , dec 3 ( reuters ) - a u . s . congressional panel said on monday it had scheduled meetings with representatives of the securities exchange commission , auditing firm arthur andersen and enron corp . to explore the energy giant ' s rapid disintegration .
rep . billy tauzin , chairman of the house energy and commerce committee , has directed his staff to meet with the sec , enron financial auditor arthur andersen and top enron executives , a panel spokesman told reuters .
" the committee will be moving aggressively to pin down what went wrong and what , if anything , congress can do to prevent this type of thing from happening again , " a spokesman for the louisiana republican said .
committee staff will meet with sec ' s head of enforcement and general counsel on tuesday and with top representatives from arthur andersen on wednesday , the spokesman said .
on thursday , three house energy committee staffers will travel to houston to meet with top enron officials " to begin laying the groundwork for a hearing , " the staffer said .
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
usa : enron bankruptcy judge heard more high - profile cases .
12 / 03 / 2001
reuters english news service
( c ) reuters limited 2001 .
new york , dec 3 ( reuters ) - judge arthur gonzalez , who will hear the bankruptcy protection case of enron corp . , is a veteran of several high - profile cases , including this year ' s chapter 11 filing by appliance maker sunbeam corp .
" they ' re lucky to have him , " said one lawyer who has represented a company that appeared before gonzalez in u . s . bankruptcy court for the southern district of new york .
the lawyer , who requested anonymity , said gonzalez was viewed as " a very fair judge .
" he is extremely deliberate , very hard - working and very thorough , " he told reuters .
" i don ' t think there was a single hearing at which he had not read all the pleadings . other judges are more laissez faire and some don ' t read all the pleadings , preferring to just ask questions , " the lawyer said . " judge gonzalez makes careful decisions . "
asked if that meant gonzalez was inclined to favor a company petitioning for bankruptcy protection , he said : " well , there are certain judges you would prefer not to have . "
gonzalez , who was appointed to the federal bankruptcy court in new york in 1995 , has recently been hearing the case of sunbeam , which filed for chapter 11 protection this year after questions about its accounting .
in may , federal securities regulators accused former top executives at the appliance maker - including former chief executive albert " chainsaw al " dunlap - of financial fraud that cost investors billions of dollars .
last week , gonzalez postponed a hearing on sunbeam ' s second amended plan of reorganization - which was to be heard on tuesday - to next march 19 .
coincidentally in both cases , in which the company ' s accounting is central , the accounting firm arthur andersen was auditor for sunbeam and also enron .
gonzalez also oversaw the 1998 bankruptcy filing of livent inc . , the canadian theater - production company that collapsed amid major accounting irregularities .
last year , gonzalez was on the bench for the case of iridium llc , a satellite telephone service , which entered the history books as one of the costliest corporate fiascoes of all time .
the washington - based company cut off telephone service to its 55 , 000 customers as a prelude to court - ordered liquidation . iridium ' s last act was to " de - orbit " or ultimately burn up its constellation of 66 satellites . the network has been reported to have cost $ 5 billion to $ 7 billion .
gonzalez cleared iridium to spend $ 8 . 3 million to start winding up its business while selling remaining earth - bound assets , including ground stations .
last year , he was also in charge of the case involving u . s . media holdings inc . and its golden turtle press inc . unit which filed chapter 11 petitions .
this year , gonzalez has been hearing the chapter 11 case of insurance company reliance group holdings inc . and also australia ' s collapsed hih insurance ltd .
gonzalez received a degree in accounting from new york ' s fordham university in 1969 and a master ' s degree in education from brooklyn college in 1974 .
he got his law degree at fordham university ' s law school in 1982 and llm in taxation in 1990 from new york university law school . after a spell in private practice , he was appointed assistant u . s . trustee in the southern district of new york in 1991 and u . s . trustee for the second circuit in 1993 .
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
usa : us northwest natural seeks to buy portland general .
by chris baltimore
12 / 03 / 2001
reuters english news service
( c ) reuters limited 2001 .
washington , dec 3 ( reuters ) - northwest natural gas co said monday it asked approval from federal energy regulators to buy portland general electric co . from enron corp for $ 1 . 8 billion .
northwest expects to soon file a similar request with the u . s . securities and exchange commission , a company spokesman said .
the purchase is unrelated to the status of enron ' s northern natural gas pipeline , to which dynegy inc . is claiming rights after canceling a bid to purchase enron last week .
portland , ore . - based northwest natural gas is a local natural gas distribution company that serves about 530 , 000 customers in oregon and washington .
it is oregon ' s largest natural gas utility , while portland general is the state ' s biggest electric utility .
northwest filed for approval with the federal energy regulatory commission ( ferc ) on friday , after a similar application with the oregon public utilities commission on nov . 28 , with a response requested by may 15 , 2002 .
the oregon commission ' s " watershed approval " would allow northwest to take operational control of portland general by the end of 2002 , said northwest spokesman jim boehlke .
northwest said it wants ferc to act on its request by feb . 20 , 2002 .
enron ' s declaration of bankruptcy over the weekend " could complicate things " for northwest ' s plans for portland general , boehlke said . but northwest is " going forward ( with the purchase ) without regard for what it going on in the enron bankruptcy proceedings , " he said .
a bankruptcy court is likely to look favorably on northwest ' s purchase , boehlke said , because it will give enron cash to pay debts . " we ' re about to give ( enron ) $ 1 . 55 billion dollars in cash . hopefully a bankruptcy court would want that to go forward , " he said .
the deal also includes $ 50 million in common stock and $ 200 million in special preferred stock , he said .
portland general serves 733 , 000 oregon customers , owns 26 , 000 miles of transmission and distribution lines and 2 , 015 megawatts of generation . one megawatt is enough to power roughly 1 , 000 homes .
after purchasing portland general in 1997 , enron agreed to sell it to sierra pacific resources corp . for $ 2 . 1 billion in 1999 .
but that deal was abandoned in april after regulators in california and nevada barred sierra pacific from divesting generation assets in those states , which it needed to finance its purchase .
state regulators took action after a power shortage in the wester united states sent prices skyrocketing and made states rethink plans to deregulate their electricity markets , including asset divestitures . that allowed northwest to move ahead with its own purchase plans .
ferc will rule on whether the combination has an adverse impact on competition , and northwest does not expect ferc or other regulators to raise substantive issues , boehlke said .
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
enron field moniker uncertain in wake of bankruptcy
by mark babineck
associated press writer
12 / 03 / 2001
associated press newswires
copyright 2001 . the associated press . all rights reserved .
houston ( ap ) - while enron corp . is current on its payments to keep the beleaguered company ' s name on houston ' s ballpark , it ' s unclear whether 2 - year - old enron field might have an identity crisis soon .
club officials , who did not immediately return calls monday , have said that as long as enron continues to exist and maintains regular payments on its 30 - year , $ 100 million commitment , the downtown stadium will stay enron field .
" we were saddened by the recent events , " astros president pam gardner said last week after enron ' s emergency buyout suitor , rival dynegy inc . , backed out of the deal when enron ' s credit rating was lowered to junk status .
" it ' s a sad situation for the enron employees and the city of houston . but we have a contract with enron that is current and as long as that is the case , the ballpark will continue to be called enron field . "
enron has filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy in a manhattan court , meaning it wants to remain in business and reorganize to settle $ 31 . 1 billion in debts . in the meantime , the court will oversee enron ' s business operations and expenditures , including the stadium deal .
enron ' s fall , one of the largest bankruptcies in history , is the latest instance of a stadium name holder hitting the skids . the twa dome in st . louis became the dome at america ' s center when the storied airline went belly up and was bought by american airlines this year .
psinet stadium in baltimore has kept its moniker even as its namesake company wades through bankruptcy . some others that have named stadiums , like 3 com corp . and cmgi inc . , are wading in red ink .
dean bonham , whose bonham group negotiates such deals both for venues and sponsoring companies , said enron ' s downfall will affect the market .
" the most notable and obvious effect is that our clients , as well as other clients in the industry , are going to be extremely cautious when they enter naming rights discussions , " bonham said monday .
however , even due diligence might not be enough . bonham said enron , which ranked seventh in the fortune 500 last year with $ 101 billion in revenue , must have appeared rock solid when they signed with the astros .
bonham even noted that just a few weeks ago , right before a stunning string of negative announcements drove enron ' s stock price well below that of a bag of peanuts , he was involved in talks with enron to name a major league soccer stadium .
teams and companies must both make sure their contracts guard against all eventualities , including bankruptcies , mergers and " image - association " issues that might make arrangements unattractive .
" our clients have the absolute right at their option to cancel the agreement , " bonham said .
- - -
on the net :
houston astros : http : / / www . astros . com
enron : http : / / www . enron . com
bonham group : http : / / www . bonham . com
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .
eott energy partners , l . p . not a party to enron bankruptcy
12 / 03 / 2001
pr newswire
( copyright ( c ) 2001 , pr newswire )
houston , dec . 3 / prnewswire / - - eott energy partners , l . p . ( nyse : eot ) confirmed today that its general partner was not among the companies included in enron corp . ' s voluntary petition for bankruptcy protection filed yesterday . additionally , eott energy partners , l . p . , which is a publicly traded limited partnership , and its subsidiary partnerships have not filed for bankruptcy protection .
in friday ' s press release , eott disclosed among other things that it has entered into an interim credit facility with its primary lender , standard chartered , to replace its existing facility with enron corp . the interim facility provides for the immediate issuance through march 2002 of up to $ 150 million of letters of credit . reference is made to friday ' s press release and to eott ' s most recent form 10 - q filed with the securities and exchange commission for further information .
eott energy partners , l . p . is a major independent marketer and transporter of crude oil in north america . eott transports most of the lease crude oil it purchases via pipeline , which includes 8 , 200 miles of active intrastate and interstate pipeline and gathering systems . in addition , eott owns and operates a hydrocarbon processing plant and a natural gas liquids storage and pipeline grid system . eott energy corp . , a wholly - owned subsidiary of enron corp . , is the general partner of eott with headquarters in houston . eott ' s internet address is www . eott . com . the partnership ' s common units are traded on the new york stock exchange under the ticker symbol " eot " .
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/ contact : media relations , wade gates of burson marsteller , + 1 - 214 - 224 - 8408 , for eott energy partners , l . p . / 14 : 14 est
copyright ? 2000 dow jones & company , inc . all rights reserved .