Creditors May Push SCE Into Bankruptcy

Creditors may push Southern California Edison into U.S. Bankruptcy Court before the state Legislature reconvenes next month to consider the utility’s plight, according to a spokesman for an SCE creditor group.

Orange County Treasurer John Moorlach, who heads an informal committee of SCE creditors, has been contacted by nearly a dozen creditors who say they are ready to file an involuntary-bankruptcy petition against the Rosemead utility, said Brett Barbre, a spokesman for the treasurer’s office.

“From what we’re hearing from creditors, at this point, their patience is pretty much gone,” Barbre said, declining to name the unhappy creditors.

SCE will not voluntarily file for bankruptcy protection, Ted Craver, chief financial officer for utility parent Edison International, reiterated in a conference call with creditors Tuesday. However, he acknowledged, the risk of an involuntary-bankruptcy filing has increased since the Legislature adjourned early Saturday without passing a bill to repair Edison’s finances.