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FirstEnergy Corp. is turning to the feds for a bailout of money-losing nuclear and coal plants after state lawmakers ignored its pleas, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. The Akron, Ohio-based company yesterday petitioned the U.S. Department of Energy to intervene to keep three nuclear plants in Ohio and Pennsylvania alive, arguing that owners of nuclear and coal-fired assets should be compensated for the “fuel security and diversity” they provide the country. The application came hours after FirstEnergy announced that it would deactivate more than 4,000 megawatts of nuclear generation over the next three years if it can’t find buyers. The company has also said it plans to place its fleet of coal and nuclear plants in bankruptcy as part of its exit from the merchant power business.

Cobalt International Energy Inc. is facing objections to its attempts to tackle nearly $2.8 billion in debt through a bankruptcy-payout plan, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. Dragged into distress by a tough energy market and fumbled attempts to sell its Angolan interests, Cobalt filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Dec. 14, having reached no agreements — except one — with creditors. The exception was a decision to put Cobalt’s oil-and-gas interests in the Gulf of Mexico on the bankruptcy-auction block. Results of that auction, a disappointing $580 million, won’t go far to address the company’s mountain of debt. Cobalt also has a $500 million settlement with Angola’s state-controlled energy group, Sociedade Nacional de Combustíveis de Angola - Empresa Pública, or Sonangol, to collect, and distribute to creditors. A chapter 11 plan set for confirmation hearings next week will pay more than $550 million in first-lien debts in full and cover half or more of $900 million in second-lien notes, court papers say.

Las Vegas restaurateur Billy Richardson has acquired the Elephant Bar chain out of bankruptcy, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported. Richardson, founder of Gen3 Hospitality, operates The Barrymore, Flour & Barley, Haute Doggery and other restaurants. His latest addition has a location at The District at Green Valley Ranch in Henderson, along with one in New Mexico and five in California. Elephant Bar filed for chapter 11 protection in October 2017 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Las Vegas. The chain also went bankrupt in 2014, albeit under different owners, and its restaurant tally shrank drastically in recent years. Richardson completed the purchase about a month ago. His group did not disclose the terms.

Southeastern Grocers LLC, the owner of the Bi-Lo and Winn-Dixie supermarket chains, won bankruptcy court approval Wednesday for procedures to close or sell about 100 stores and for a key vendor to provide easier credit terms as part of the grocer’s chapter 11 reorganization, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. Bankruptcy Judge Mary Walrath signed off on the requests as part of a prepackaged bankruptcy filed on Tuesday by the Jacksonville, Fla.-based retailer, which faced maturing debt later this year. Southeastern’s reorganization, if approved, will hand ownership to its creditors and reduce its debt by about $500 million, to roughly $700 million. Southeastern said earlier this month it reached an agreement with a creditor group holding 80 percent of its outstanding 8.625 percent/9.375 percent unsecured pay-in-kind toggle notes due September 2018. The unsecured noteholders will receive the equity in the restructured company in exchange for canceling their $522 million in claims for the notes, a court filing said. Read more. 

Occupancy issues are at the heart of many significant retail cases, as detailed in the forthcoming ABI publication Retail and Office Bankruptcy: Landlord/Tenant Rights, available for pre-order at the ABI Store. https://store.abi.org/retail-and-office-bankruptcy-landlord-tenant-righ…

Women who have sued Harvey Weinstein for alleged sexual harassment and assault will sit alongside business creditors on a panel that will play a crucial role in wrapping up the affairs of the movie and TV studio he co-founded, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. Weinstein Co. filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on March 19 and is headed toward a sale to investment firm Lantern Capital or a higher bidder at a potential auction. The official creditors committee, which was chosen Wednesday by the U.S. Trustee, a Justice Department official monitoring the case, in a meeting at a hotel in Wilmington, Del., will speak for all unsecured creditors in the case, as Weinstein Co. deals with the fallout from allegations of sexual assault and harassment by Weinstein. Members of the committee include Sandeep Rehal, a former assistant to Weinstein who claims in a sex discrimination lawsuit that she was forced to deliver injectable erectile dysfunction drugs to him. Also on the panel is Louisette Geiss, one of the leaders of a federal class action. Geiss alleges she met with Weinstein to pitch him a script, and was assaulted, threatened and falsely imprisoned. Read more.

Don’t miss the “Restructuring a Firm After Discrimination or Sexual Harassment Claims” session at the Annual Spring Meeting. Register by tomorrow before rates go up!

The liquidation of Toys “R” Us Inc. has stoked fears about how the U.S. toy industry will absorb the blow. But the shutdown of the company’s sister chain, Babies “R” Us, is setting off its own wave of disruption in the market for infant products, Bloomberg News reported. As the company begins holding closeout sales and planning store closures, other retailers are scrambling to scoop up customers and capture their registries — a potentially lucrative prize. Buy Buy Baby Inc., Target Corp. and Amazon.com Inc. stand to benefit from the shake-up. Until recently, Babies “R” Us had hoped to use its registry business as the linchpin of a comeback. The idea was to spur sales of big-ticket items, such as furniture, rather than lower-margin fare like diapers. As of last year, the company had enrolled 23 million customers in the service. But after the bankruptcy and liquidation filing of its parent company, Babies “R” Us told customers last week that it would no longer accept new registries. And people who are already registered with the chain are now racing to move their lists elsewhere. Read more.

Don't miss the special live taping of "Eye on Bankruptcy" at ABI's Annual Spring Meeting as experts discuss the next wave in retail cases. Register before Friday before rates go up!

Boston Store parent company The Bon-Ton Stores Inc. will shell out millions of dollars to lawyers and consulting firms for services rendered during the company's first month of bankruptcy proceedings, the Milwaukee Business Journal reported. Court filings show that department store chain operator Bon-Ton is requesting approval from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware to compensate those law firms and companies that have consulted with or represented the retailer during the first month of its chapter 11 bankruptcy case. The Milwaukee and York, Pa.-based company filed for bankruptcy on Feb. 4 and has utilized services from firms such as New York-based PJT Partners and AlixPartners LLP, among other companies. Bon-Ton's largest invoice for February is from PJT Partners, which has acted as the company's investment banker, according to court records. PJT is billing Bon-Ton $2.13 million — which includes a capital raising fee — for the first month for services such as: providing strategic advice; assisting Bon-Ton in identifying potential buyers; assisting potential buyers with due diligence on Bon-Ton; reviewing cash reporting packages and liquidity forecasts, among other tasks. Read more.

Don't miss the special live taping of "Eye on Bankruptcy" at ABI's Annual Spring Meeting as experts discuss the next wave in retail cases. Register before Friday before rates go up!

A judge has approved Brookfield Business Partners LP's $4.6 billion acquisition of Westinghouse Electric Co., setting up the company’s exit from bankruptcy under new ownership, the Wall Street Journal reported. Bankruptcy Judge Michael Wiles said yesterday that he will sign off on Westinghouse’s chapter 11 plan of reorganization which includes the Brookfield transaction and a settlement with creditors over how proceeds from the sale will be divvied up. The deal still must be approved by U.S. regulators. Westinghouse has said it expects the deal with Brookfield to close in the third quarter, subject to receiving regulatory approval and satisfying other closing conditions. Court approval of the deal caps a turbulent year for Westinghouse and gives the business a chance at a fresh start with a new owner. The deal will be financed by roughly $1 billion in equity and $3 billion in long-term debt and the assumption of other obligations, according to Brookfield.

The bankruptcy of GreenTech Automotive Inc., an electric car maker once partly owned by former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, was filed “in bad faith” to “snuff out investigations” into its “corrupt” practices and to shift its remaining value to insiders, 32 Chinese investors alleged, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. The investors filed a lawsuit against the company last year and are now seeking to have GreenTech’s chapter 11 case dismissed. The investors, who had sunk more than $500,000 each into GreenTech based on what they say were false promises of green cards and guaranteed returns, late last year sued GreenTech and its current and former executives, including McAuliffe.