Philadelphia Energy Solutions, the operator of an urban oil refinery that in June released thousands of pounds of deadly chemicals into the air of one of the country’s largest cities, won bankruptcy court approval yesterday of a gap-filled outline of its restructuring proposal, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. The chapter 11 plan papers approved yesterday by a bankruptcy judge don’t indicate what will become of Philadelphia Energy, how much it owes, or how much creditors can expect to receive. Federal bankruptcy watchdogs said those are basic data that creditors need before casting their votes. “The acid test of a disclosure statement is to tell the creditors what they are going to get and when they’re going to get it,” said David Buchbinder, a government lawyer representing U.S. Trustee Andrew Vara. Philadelphia Energy’s chapter 11 plan report, he said, is “not only inadequate, it’s worthless.” Philadelphia Energy has said that the operation doesn’t have the money to stay in bankruptcy long and needs to start wrapping things up before it knows whether it will find a buyer.
