Dynegy

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn said he would vote against Blackstone Group's proposal to buy Dynegy Inc. and would offer a $2-billion line of credit to the struggling power company. Icahn and hedge fund Seneca Capital, Dynegy's two largest shareholders, believe the private equity firm's $543-million bid for the company is too low, threatening the deal. Seneca has argued that the company would have more value on its own, but Dynegy has said it could face dire financial problems.

Dynegy Inc. warned that it may have to file for bankruptcy this year as it faces debt payments and low prices for the electricity it produces. Dynegy said it may be unable to make debt payments by the third or fourth quarter of this year, according to a regulatory filing late Tuesday. "This condition and its impact on Dynegy Inc.'s liquidity raises substantial doubt about Dynegy Inc.'s ability to continue as a going concern," the company said. Dynegy said it's attempting to amend or replace its existing $1.8-billion credit facility.

Dynegy Inc. warned that it may have to file for bankruptcy this year as it faces debt payments and low prices for the electricity it produces. Dynegy said it may be unable to make debt payments by the third or fourth quarter of this year, according to a regulatory filing late Tuesday. "This condition and its impact on Dynegy Inc.'s liquidity raises substantial doubt about Dynegy Inc.'s ability to continue as a going concern," the company said. Dynegy said it's attempting to amend or replace its existing $1.8-billion credit facility.

Power producer Dynegy Inc. will replace its chief executive and all its board after shareholders rejected Icahn Enterprises' $665-million offer. Bruce Williamson, 51, has resigned as chairman and will step down as CEO effective March 11, Dynegy said in a statement. Patricia A. Hammick, 64, who headed a board of independent directors reviewing the Icahn bid, will become chairwoman, the company said. Board member David Biegler, 64, will become interim CEO. Chief Financial Officer Holli Nichols, 40, also will resign as of March 11. Dynegy, based in Houston, said none of its five remaining directors would stand for reelection at the company's annual meeting planned for June.

Private-equity firm Blackstone Group struck a deal Friday to buy power producer Dynegy Inc. for $543 million in cash and sell Dynegy plants in California and Maine to NRG Energy Inc. in the latest shake-up in the electricity industry. The deal values Dynegy at $4.7 billion including debt, which would make it one of the biggest buyouts of a power company since Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, TPG Capital and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. bought power company TXU Corp. for $32 billion in 2007.

Power provider Dynegy Inc. will sell eight plants plus another under development for about $1 billion in cash and $500 million in stock as the company tries to bolster its finances and reduce debt. Houston-based Dynegy reported that its second-quarter loss widened 27% as it wrote down the value of some of the plants it will sell to former development partner LS Power Associates and because of falling energy prices. Losses for the quarter that ended June 30 totaled $345 million, or 41 cents a share, compared with $272 million, or 32 cents, a year earlier.

A former Dynegy Inc. executive was sentenced to 24 years in prison Thursday in an accounting fraud case that fell under tough new punishment rules aimed at discouraging corporate corruption. Jamie Olis is obliged to serve nearly all of his sentence because there is no parole in the federal system. He is 38, and could remain behind bars until he is 62. "I take no pleasure in sentencing you to 292 months," U.S. District Judge Sim Lake said in handing down the sentence.

Dynegy Inc. said it would not pay dividends in the third quarter and has no plans to reinstate them "in the near term." The Houston-based energy marketer said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that its board of directors elected to suspend dividends to focus on the company's plan to raise $2 billion to strengthen finances and improve its image on Wall Street. Dynegy said when the plan was unveiled in June that dividends would be cut in half.

Dynegy Inc. will take a second-quarter pretax charge of $500 million, more than expected, after the U.S. energy trader revised natural-gas sales figures. The Houston-based company had forecast $450 million, mostly for costs from its communications business and severance payments. The increase follows a review of results in its gas-marketing business, Dynegy said. The marketing charge alone will be about $125 million and comes as Dynegy and other traders face probes of their business practices.

A former Dynegy Inc. accountant serving six years for helping foster a multimillion-dollar fraud scheme has asked a federal court to set aside his convictions and free him from jail. According to the 106-page petition, prosecutors won Jamie Olis' conviction in part by violating his constitutional rights to present the defense of his choice.

Asset manager Blackstone Group said Tuesday that it would increase its takeover bid for Dynegy Inc. to $5 a share in what it termed its "best and final offer" for the Houston energy company. The move comes a day ahead of a scheduled shareholder vote on Blackstone's previous offer to pay $4.50 a share and assume more than $4 billion in Dynegy debt to take the energy company private. Tuesday's sweetened offer represents an 11.1% hike over the previous bid. Dynegy has been urging shareholders to vote in favor of the takeover by Blackstone, saying it is in the best interest of shareholders.

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn said he would vote against Blackstone Group's proposal to buy Dynegy Inc. and would offer a $2-billion line of credit to the struggling power company. Icahn and hedge fund Seneca Capital, Dynegy's two largest shareholders, believe the private equity firm's $543-million bid for the company is too low, threatening the deal. Seneca has argued that the company would have more value on its own, but Dynegy has said it could face dire financial problems.

Private-equity firm Blackstone Group struck a deal Friday to buy power producer Dynegy Inc. for $543 million in cash and sell Dynegy plants in California and Maine to NRG Energy Inc. in the latest shake-up in the electricity industry. The deal values Dynegy at $4.7 billion including debt, which would make it one of the biggest buyouts of a power company since Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, TPG Capital and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. bought power company TXU Corp. for $32 billion in 2007.

Power provider Dynegy Inc. will sell eight plants plus another under development for about $1 billion in cash and $500 million in stock as the company tries to bolster its finances and reduce debt. Houston-based Dynegy reported that its second-quarter loss widened 27% as it wrote down the value of some of the plants it will sell to former development partner LS Power Associates and because of falling energy prices. Losses for the quarter that ended June 30 totaled $345 million, or 41 cents a share, compared with $272 million, or 32 cents, a year earlier.

A former Dynegy Inc. accountant serving six years for helping foster a multimillion-dollar fraud scheme has asked a federal court to set aside his convictions and free him from jail. According to the 106-page petition, prosecutors won Jamie Olis' conviction in part by violating his constitutional rights to present the defense of his choice.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday said that three former Dynegy Inc. executives settled charges for their role in a $300-million accounting fraud that involved disguising a loan as operating cash flow. Former Chief Financial Officer Robert Doty will pay more than $375,000 to settle the SEC charge, the agency said in a statement.

After rival U.S. power producers cut or reiterated forecasts last week, Dynegy Inc. said its earnings this year and next will meet or beat analysts' estimates. Profit will be at least $2.07 a share this year and $2.50 to $2.60 a share in 2002, a Dynegy spokesman said. The average estimates of analysts is $2.06 a share for this year and $2.56 a share for next. Shares of power producer AES Corp. plunged 49% last week after it cut its 2001 earnings forecast and Exelon Corp.

Enron Corp., the troubled energy-trading giant, was in talks Wednesday over a possible takeover by Houston neighbor and rival Dynegy Inc., industry sources said. The boards of both companies were meeting late Wednesday concerning a potential deal, which almost certainly would mean the end of the line for Chairman and Chief Executive Kenneth Lay, architect of Enron's emergence as the dominant force in the relatively new electronic markets for natural gas and electricity.

Chevron Corp. plans to sell its 12% stake in independent power producer Dynegy Inc., the companies said, as Chevron moves to pare its non-core operations. At Monday's closing price of $10.17 a share, Chevron's stake would be worth about $985 million. After Dynegy announced the sale, its shares fell 2.7% to $9.90 in after-the-bell trading. Chevron said its Chevron USA subsidiary intended to sell all of its approximately 96.

AES Corp. and Dynegy Inc. can't be sued in California state court over claims that they manipulated power prices during the state's energy crisis in 2000 and 2001, an appeals court said. The California Court of Appeals in San Diego upheld a lower court's dismissal of a group of lawsuits brought by California municipalities and consumers.