Abengoa SA put its U.S. bioenergy unit into chapter 11 protection yesterday with up to $10 billion in liabilities, the latest twist in the multinational parent's race to avoid becoming Spain's largest corporate failure, Reuters reported. The U.S. filing came as the Spanish company faced a March 28 deadline to agree on a wide-ranging restructuring plan with its banks and bondholders, without which it could be forced to declare bankruptcy. The filing by Abengoa Bioenergy US Holding LLC was prompted by involuntary bankruptcy petitions against two subsidiaries earlier this month by grain suppliers, including Gavilon Grain LLC, the Farmers Cooperative Association, The Andersons Inc. and Central Valley Ag. The suppliers, which claim to be owed more than $4 million, said they were told that Abengoa Bioenergy, whose Spanish parent controls the "central treasury," had run out of cash, court documents showed.
