Energy Future Holdings Corp. yesterday outlined a deal that resolved the biggest disputes hanging over the company as it opened a trial to confirm its plan to exit bankruptcy and be acquired by NextEra Energy Inc. for about $18 billion, Reuters reported. Dallas-based Energy Future indirectly owns Oncor, the largest distributor of power in Texas, and is using the sale to NextEra to finance its plan to repay creditors. A lawyer for Energy Future told the court at the start of yesterday’s hearing that its noteholders had agreed to a discount of what they were owed to settle a dispute that erupted in the wake of a November ruling by a U.S. Appeals Court. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit had ruled that the company owed noteholders hundreds of millions of dollars in unanticipated payments for the early redemption of their securities, upsetting a prior exit plan. Energy Future's lawyer told the court the first-lien noteholders agreed to accept a 5 percent discount of the early redemption payment and second-lien noteholders agreed to a 12.5 percent discount. That freed up cash for junior creditors.
