Jeremy Hill, Eduard Gismatullin and Rachel Morison
The largest power generation and transmission cooperative in Texas filed for bankruptcy in the wake of power outages that caused an energy crisis during the winter freeze last month.
Brazos Electric Power Cooperative filed for Chapter 11 in the Texas after racking up an estimated $2.1 billion in charges over seven days of the freeze. Last year, it cost cooperative members $774 million for power for all of 2020.
The magnitude of the charges “could not have been reasonably anticipated or modeled” and far exceeds Brazos highest liquidity levels in recent years, Executive Vice President Clifton Karnei said in a bankruptcy court declaration. The cooperative on Feb. 25 told state grid operator the Electric Reliability Council of Texas that it wouldn’t pay the $2.1 billion sum, and …