San Jose, CA-based Calpine Corp., the aggressive independent power plant developer/operator, filed its joint plan of reorganization and the customary disclosure statement with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, saying it expects to have the plan confirmed by the court and creditors during the fourth quarter this year.

If successful, the once-overleveraged company would emerge with an estimated $21.7 billion midpoint reorganization value after two years from its Chapter 11 process filed Dec. 21, 2005.

Calpine said it estimated its total enterprise value at the point of leaving Chapter 11 would be between $19.2 billion and $21.3 billion, with a midpoint of $20.3 billion, and estimates that distributable cash would be approximately $1.4 billion at emergence.

Calpine estimated that allowed claims will range from $20.1 billion to $22.3 billion after completion of Clapine’s claims objection, reconciliation, and resolution process. So far, neither of the official creditor committees have approved the plan, the company said.

The restructuring plan is the company blueprint for paying off all of its claims and regaining the status of a profitable publicly held energy company, while the disclosure statement provides a historical profile of the once high-flying merchant energy company, along with a description of proposed distributions to creditors and an analysis of the restructuring plan’s feasibility. Certain technical matters on the bankruptcy exit process are covered in the statement, including who is eligible to vote on the plan and how the voting process will unfold.

“The filing of our Plan of Reorganization is a significant milestone on our road to recovery and takes us one giant step closer to successfully reorganizing Calpine for the benefit of our stakeholders, employees and customers,” said CEO Robert P. May, admitting the company still has a lot to do to complete the process. “This proposed plan provides a clear path for Calpine to emerge as a stronger, more financially stable company with an improved competitive position in the energy industry.”

General Counsel Gregory Doody called Calpine’s 18-month-old voluntary bankruptcy “the largest and most complex reorganization conducted under the new bankruptcy laws.”

May thanked the company’s remaining 2,300 employees for “unwavering support and hard work.” The power plant developer/operator, originally formed to develop one small geothermal plant in 1984, has hired a number of new senior executives this year as long-term executives left the company.

Calpine said its plan now before the court and creditors is a so-called “waterfall” plan, allocating value to the company’s creditors and shareholders in accordance with the priorities of the federal bankruptcy code. Under the plan, allowed administrative claims and priority tax claims will be paid in full in cash or cash equivalents, as will the allowed first and second lien debt claims, Calpine said.

Similar steps are outlined for other allowed secured and unsecured claims.

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