Bankruptcy Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Alderson Broaddus University To File For Bankruptcy

Alderson Broaddus University’s Board of Trustees has voted to file a petition with the United States Bankruptcy Court to liquidate the university’s assets under Chapter 7 of the Bankruptcy Code and plans to file that petition today, August 31,2023.

That is according to a letter filed with the West Virginia Public Service Commission (PSC) Wednesday by board chair James Garvin. The letter asks PSC to not authorize the termination of utility services until the filing of the bankruptcy petition and the implementation of the resulting automatic stay of collection efforts by creditors, including the City of Philippi.

The letter gives three reasons for the continued need for utilities on campus including an on-campus daycare center and the storage of volatile chemicals. The third reason is the need of a bankruptcy trustee to assess the university’s affairs.

The letter was filed as a response to PSC’s Aug. 8 order for the university to appear and show cause why electric, garbage, sewer and water services should not be terminated. The City of Philippi opened proceedings to terminate the university’s utilities July 27, claiming Alderson Broaddus owed the city more than $750,000.

Less than a week later on July 31, the Higher Education Policy Commission (HEPC) voted unanimously to revoke the private university’s authorization to confer degrees in the state. With more than $30 million in debt, HEPC determined the financial condition rendered the institution unable to create a stable, effective and safe learning environment for its students.

Universities across West Virginia have made accommodations for Alderson Broaddus students impacted by the situation that suddenly needed to transfer in the days and weeks before the start of the fall semester.

In the letter, Garvin said the HEPC order had eliminated the university’s normal source of tuition revenue, leading to the decision to file for bankruptcy.

“The absence of that revenue and the nearly total lack of financial liquidity necessary to operate have severely impaired AB’s ability to effectively wind down its operations as described in the HEPC Order,” the letter said.

The letter concludes asking PSC to deny the City of Philippi’s petition and direct the city to continue providing utility services until it can reach an agreement with the university’s bankruptcy trustee or until the U.S. Bankruptcy Court enters an order addressing the provision of utility services.

West Virginia Hospital Files For Bankruptcy Protection

A West Virginia hospital has filed for bankruptcy protection.

Williamson Memorial Hospital made the Chapter 11 filing Monday in federal bankruptcy court.

Williamson-based Mingo Health Partners LLC bought the 76-bed hospital from Franklin, Tennessee-based Community Healthcare Systems in 2018.

The filing lists at least 50 creditors, including $651,000 owed to CHS and $486,000 to Huntington-based Ohio Valley Physicians, an emergency department staffing company based in Huntington.

The filing lists the hospital’s assets and liabilities both at between $1 million and $10 million.

Coal Waste Plant in Fight in Struggle to Stay Open

A coal waste plant at risk of shutting down in West Virginia is hoping to stay open through state proceedings.

The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports the Grant Town Power Plant’s owner, American Bituminous Power Partners, has teetered on the verge of bankruptcy, according to company filings.

In May, the state Public Service Commission denied the company’s proposal to increase its electric energy purchase agreement with FirstEnergy company Mon Power from $34.25 per megawatt hour to $40 per megawatt hour, which would have bumped up customer rates, so it could have a better chance at staying open.

But the PSC kept the company’s EEPA rate the same to allow American Bituminous an opportunity to continue operating while renegotiating its business structure.

Environmental activists have appealed, saying the PSC’s order contained “legal errors.”

Alpha Selling Coal, Gas Operations in West Virginia

Alpha Natural Resources has announced the sales of a coal mining complex and a natural gas operation in West Virginia.

The company, which emerged from bankruptcy reorganization last year, says its Green Valley mining assets in Nicholas and Greenbrier counties are being sold to Quinwood Coal Co.

That sale includes the Number 1 preparation plant and related permits that have been idle since 2014.

Alpha, now based in Kingsport, Tennessee, says its New River Energy natural gas operation, including 120 producing wells in five counties, is being sold to Kinzer Drilling.

Terms were not disclosed.

Chief Executive David Stetson says the divestments reduce Alpha’s annual bonding by about $3.5 million and future reclamation spending at the sites, as well as $1.1 million of annual holding costs for idle properties.

Bankruptcy Halts Auction of Marooned Elkview Mall

A last-minute bankruptcy filing has halted the sale of an Elkview shopping center that has been marooned and shuttered since a crucial access bridge was washed away by flooding last summer.

A group was forming on the steps of the Kanawha County Courthouse on Tuesday to participate in an auction for the Crossings Mall property, but the scheduled sale was called off after the mall owners filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

The move will likely further delay construction of a new bridge to access the property.

About 500 employees who worked at the mall have been unable to return since June floods washed out the bridge.

The property will stay with the owners, Tara Retail Group, as the bankruptcy case heads to court.

Peabody, Largest U.S. Coal Miner, Seeks Bankruptcy Protection

Peabody Energy, the nation’s largest coal miner, is seeking bankruptcy protection.

The filing comes less than three months after another from Arch Coal, the country’s second-largest miner, which followed bankruptcy filings from Alpha Natural Resources.

New energy technology and tightening environmental regulations have throttled the industry and led to a wave of mine closures and job cuts. Peabody makes most of its money by selling its coal to utility companies that use it to generate electricity. But many utilities have shifted to using natural gas, which costs less than coal and produces less pollution.

Peabody Energy Corp., based in St. Louis, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Wednesday in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Missouri.