GE Plans to Acquire Wind-Turbine Assets

General Electric Co. agreed to purchase Enron Corp.’s wind-turbine manufacturing assets, after Enron Wind Corp. and nine affiliated companies filed for bankruptcy protection as part of the proposed transaction.

Enron Wind and its affiliates, which filed for Chapter 11 protection Wednesday, weren’t included in the parent company’s Chapter 11 filing in December.

Tehachapi, Calif.-based Enron Wind is one of the world’s largest wind-turbine operators and is a profitable business. But “its future growth requires more capital than we can justify,” said Stanley Horton, chief executive of Enron Global Services.

The proposed purchase by GE’s Power Systems unit includes Enron Wind’s global wind-turbine manufacturing and marketing operations. It doesn’t affect wind farms owned or operated by Enron. GE will continue to provide operational support for most of the facilities, Enron said.

Financial details weren’t available. GE is offering about $250 million in cash and would assume $150 million in debt, the Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday. The deal requires a bankruptcy judge’s approval and is expected to close in April.