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FirstEnergy unit files for bankruptcy, shutting down 3 nuclear reactors

FILE--In this July 14, 2010, file photo, gavels and law books are shown in the office of California Supreme Court Chief Justice Ronald George at his office in San Francisco, Calif. The State Bar of California on Monday, July 31, 2017, proposed lowering the minimum score on the most recent licensing exam for attorneys amid an alarming decline in people passing the test considered one of the toughest in the U.S. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, file)
FILE--In this July 14, 2010, file photo, gavels and law books are shown in the office of California Supreme Court Chief Justice Ronald George at his office in San Francisco, Calif. The State Bar of California on Monday, July 31, 2017, proposed lowering the minimum score on the most recent licensing exam for attorneys amid an alarming decline in people passing the test considered one of the toughest in the U.S. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, file) FILE--In this July 14, 2010, file photo, gavels and law books are shown in the office of California Supreme Court Chief Justice Ronald George at his office in San Francisco, Calif. The State Bar of California on Monday, July 31, 2017, proposed lowering the minimum score on the most recent licensing exam for attorneys amid an alarming decline in people passing the test considered one of the toughest in the U.S. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, file)

By Staff and Wire Reports 3 min read

A subsidiary that runs FirstEnergy Corp.’s nuclear and coal-fired power plants has filed for bankruptcy after the utility said earlier it planned to close its three nuclear plants in Ohio and Pennsylvania.

The move announced by FirstEnergy Solutions signals the parent company’s plan to get out of the power producing business and concentrate on supplying electricity. The subsidiary, which has been saddled by mounting debt, said in a statement that it’s seeking bankruptcy protection to “facilitate an orderly financial restructuring” and believes the filing is in the best interests of the company and creditors.

The filing for bankruptcy protection includes FirstEnergy Solutions, along with all FES subsidiaries and FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Co., according to the statement.

The company plans to close its Davis-Besse nuclear plant near Toledo in 2020. FirstEnergy’s Perry plant near Cleveland, Ohio, and its Beaver Valley operation in Pennsylvania would then close in 2021.

The three plants combined employ about 2,300 people and their closing will shrink the number of operating nuclear reactors in the United States to 96, although Georgia Power is building a couple of new reactors at its Plant Vogtle near Waynesboro, Ga.