Puerto Rico in Distress

ABI Analysis

A group of bondholders and insurers of Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority debt extended a cooperation agreement to oppose the bankrupt utility’s proposal to drastically reduce its obligations, Bloomberg News reported. Assured Guaranty, Syncora Guarantee and GoldenTree Asset Management, along with an ad hoc group of investors including Invesco Advisers Inc.

The private operator of Puerto Rico’s power grid confirmed Monday the deferral of $65 million worth of maintenance and improvement projects in the U.S. territory, with some repairs postponed for at least a year because of budget constraints, putting at risk the already troubled grid — and sparking a widespread outcry, the Associated Press reported.

Puerto Rico’s financial oversight board is seeking to reopen a confirmation hearing on a debt-restructuring plan for the island’s power utility after an appeals court last week ruled that bondholders have a claim to the agency’s future net revenue, Bloomberg News reported.

A federal appeals court said Puerto Rico bondholders have collateral rights over revenue generated by its bankrupt public power utility, a ruling that could delay and possibly upend a planned $10 billion debt restructuring, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. The U.S.

Pages