President-elect Donald Trump’s plan to roll back the Obama administration’s signature proposal for reducing greenhouse gas emissions will be a boon to creditors of Peabody Energy Corp., according to bondholders who want a say in the coal miner’s debt restructuring, the Wall Street Journal reported today. The bondholders cite Trump’s election, as well as a rally in coal prices, to argue in a recent court filing that the value of Peabody’s business has “increased dramatically” since the miner sought chapter 11 protection. As a result, the bondholders say that there should be ample value to pay them at the conclusion of Peabody’s restructuring. According to one company shareholder, metallurgical coal prices have increased 235 percent, and thermal coal prices have increased 77 percent since Peabody filed for bankruptcy in April. Peabody’s bondholders, however, are also buoyed by Trump’s promises to “bring back coal 100 percent” and to reverse Obama-era rules that sought to reduce carbon emissions at power plants fueled by burning coal and other fossil fuels. Peabody has argued in federal appeals court that the rules, which are a component of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Power Plan to address global climate change, are unconstitutional and will “irreparably harm” its business.
