Nuclear power plant operator FirstEnergy Solutions (FES) said Monday it will be renamed Energy Harbor when it comes of out Chapter 11 bankruptcy restructuring as a stand-alone company.
The company will continue to be headquartered in Akron, Ohio. It will employ roughly 2,800 people, according to a press release. The bankruptcy proceeding is expected to conclude by the close of 2019, Crain’s Cleveland Business reported.
“The company will be a financially secure, independent power producer and a fully integrated retail energy provider with a competitive suite of products for its growing customer base,” FES CEO John Judge said in a prepared statement. “We will emerge well positioned for long-term value creation and competitiveness in a low-carbon future.”
FirstEnergy Solutions and FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Co., both owned by Akron-based FirstEnergy Corp., filed for bankruptcy protection in March 2018.
Among their assets are three nuclear power plants: the single-reactor Perry Nuclear Power Plant and Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station in Ohio, and the two-reactor Beaver Valley Power Station in Pennsylvania. Shortly before the bankruptcy filing, FirstEnergy Solutions said it would close all three “uneconomic” facilities by Oct. 31, 2021, if it did not receive financial assistance from the state or federal governments.
The company said in July it would keep its Ohio plants operating after the state legislature and governor approved a $150 million annual bailout funded by a rate increase. The Pennsylvania and federal governments have to date declined to enact any corresponding plans.
Critics have sought to undo the Ohio legislation through a statewide referendum in November 2020. They failed to secure the minimum number of signatures for the referendum by the deadline, but have taken their case to state court.
