On March 31, 2021, E&E News reported that on March 30, 2021, Entrust Energy Inc., an electric utility based in Houston, Texas, filed for bankruptcy after the extreme cold weather event in Texas in February 2021 caused electricity prices to soar.[1][2] The company provides electricity to more than 170,000 customers across eight states, including Texas. According to the Chapter 11 petition Entrust Energy filed in the Southern District of Texas, the company has assets of $100 million to $500 million and liabilities of $50 million to $100 million. Entrust Energy claims that it has a $270 million disputed claim with the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), the state’s power grid operator, related to supply obligations. Other claims from the filing include $1.6 million from JPMorgan Chase & Co. for a Paycheck Protection Program loan[3]. In early March 2021, ERCOT barred Entrust Energy from the state’s power market after the company failed to make payments stemming from the February 2021 cold weather event.[4] ERCOT’s filing at the time said that Entrust Energy owed $234 million in payments to generators and others. Entrust Energy’s bankruptcy filing follows bankruptcy filings from Brazos Electric Power Cooperative Inc., Texas’s largest power generation and transmission cooperative, and Griddy Energy LLC, a power retailer.

[1] https://www.bkalerts.com/recent-bankruptcy-cases/texas-southern-bankruptcy-court/4:21-bk-31070/bankruptcy-case-entrust-energy-inc-and-entrust-treasury-management-services-inc

[2] https://www.eenews.net/energywire/2021/03/31/stories/1063728833

[3] The Paycheck Protection Program was established by the CARES Act of 2020 to aid small businesses. The program provides small businesses with loans to pay payroll costs including benefits. The loans can also be used to pay rent, utilities, and interest on mortgages.

[4] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-04/a-second-power-provider-defaults-after-texas-energy-crisis