Enron India file for bankruptcy help

Enron India file for bankruptcy help

NEW YORK : Enron Corp. on Wednesday said three units holding its share in an Indian power plant filed for bankruptcy protection, raising the stakes in a growing battle over the sale of the troubled US$2.9 billion plant.

The subsidiaries hold Enron's 65 percent stake in the Dabhol power project, a gas-fired plant on India's west coast that is rusting away while creditors and shareholders battle over its sale.

The plant is one of Enron's major assets still left on the block following its bankruptcy filing last December.

By including the subsidiaries in its Chapter 11 bankruptcy case, Enron will likely have more control over how its share of the Dabhol plant is sold.

The subsidiaries are Offshore Power Production CV, Enron India Holdings Ltd. and Enron Mauritious Co., bringing the number of units that have filed for protection to 57.

"These (bankruptcy filings) were done to protect the interest of the various stakeholders, including creditors of Enron Corp, by consolidating these entities with the others that had already filed," said John Ambler, an Enron spokesman.--Reuters