Abengoa calls on US bankruptcy court to prevent lawsuits from rebel creditors

Spanish ethanol producer Abengoa is asking a US bankruptcy court to prevent legal action and future claims by creditors who are unsatisfied with a $10 billion (€9.4bn) debt restructuring plan.

The Spanish company with a global renewable energy footprint put its US subsidiaries in Chapter 11 protection this year and filed for Chapter 15 protection from creditors of non-US businesses while it tried to work out a refinancing deal.

Last month, the vast majority of Abengoa's international creditors signed on to its master restructuring agreement, which will give creditors equity in exchange for debt.

In a court filing, Abengoa asked the US bankruptcy judge to validate the refinancing deal in the US and to permanently prohibit US creditors from filing any lawsuits against the agreement.

This story was written by Liz Gyekye, editor of Biofuels International.