SunEdison settles contract fight to help close $150 mln sale
BY Reuters
— 7:00 PM ET 01/04/2017
By Jim Christie
Jan 4 (Reuters) - Bankrupt renewable energy company SunEdison Inc ( SUNEQ ) has reached a deal with a spinoff company that helps clear the way for a $150 million sale of its solar materials business to a Chinese buyer, according to court papers filed on Tuesday.
Chinese solar equipment maker GCL-Poly Energy Holdings Ltd ( GCPEF) agreed to buy the business in August, part of SunEdison's ( SUNEQ ) drive to shed assets to raise money to repay its creditors.
The sale ran into trouble due to an objection from SunEdison Semiconductor, which was spun off by SunEdison ( SUNEQ ) in 2014.
The spin-off company argued in an October court filing it had not consented to transfer of intellectual property licenses as part of the deal.
SunEdison ( SUNEQ )
has resolved that objection to help close the sale and will extend a services agreement with its affiliate through September at reduced rates.
In addition, SunEdison Semiconductor gets an administrative expense claim of nearly $2.7 million and a general unsecured claim non-priority claim of about $16.5 million, compared with the $40 million in unsecured claims it had asserted.
Once the fastest-growing U.S. renewable energy company, SunEdison ( SUNEQ ) filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in April after a binge of debt-fueled acquisitions proved unsustainable.
A hearing at which the settlement could be approved will be held in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan on Jan. 24, two days ahead of SunEdison's ( SUNEQ)target date for filing a Chapter 11 plan. (Reporting by Jim Christie; Editing by Bernard Orr)
