Enron Corp. affiliates have continued to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in recent days, making the total 28 so far. On Monday, telecommunications products trader Enron Broadband Services LP filed for bankruptcy protection in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan listing assets of $64.5 million and debt of $63.7 million, not including off-balance sheet and contingent obligations. Affiliate Enron Freight Markets Corp. filed last Friday, listing $6.3 million in assets and $4.7 million in debts.

Bankruptcy petitions also were filed last Friday by Energy Information Solutions, EESO Merchant Investments and Enron Federal Solutions, all of which are 100%-owned by bankrupt unit Enron Energy Services Operations.

Enron Broadband Services LP estimates it has between 16 and 49 creditors. Its top unsecured creditors hold trade claims, the largest being a $660,935 claim held by Global Crossing Bandwidth. Enron Bandwidth, which the petition doesn’t list as bankrupt, is a 99% general partner of Enron Broadband Services LP. A similarly named affiliate, Enron Broadband Services Inc., was one of the 14 Enron-affiliated companies that filed in the original bankruptcy filing Dec. 2.

Enron Freight Markets, owned by bankrupt Enron affiliate Enron Global Markets LLC, said it has between 200 and 999 creditors. Its largest unsecured creditors also hold trade claims, all except one of which are for less than $1 million.

Also Thursday, Enron and its lender banks agreed to postpone until Jan. 30 the deadline to complete paperwork for a $1.5 billion loan, according to Enron attorney Martin Bienenstock of Weil Gotschal and Manges. The agreement was approved Thursday by the New York bankruptcy court handling the case. It gives Enron lenders J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and Citicorp more time to complete paperwork on financing for the debtor-in-possession, or DIP. The original deadline had been Jan. 7, the day Enron will hold an auction for its trading unit.

J.P. Morgan and Citicorp arranged the loan in early December after Enron filed for bankruptcy. Responding to rumors that the banks were having difficulty in finding syndication partners to finance a loan for Enron, Bienenstock said Enron agreed to the delay because it has enough money to fund its business for the time being and the loan was not essential.

Also making news is a report by the Associated Press that Enron contributed $100,000 to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee just a week before it filed for bankruptcy protection. According to the report, Enron issued a $50,000 check on Nov. 25 and another $50,000 check on Nov. 26. The committee is an organization that aids Senate Democratic candidates.

However, Robert Bennett, an attorney representing Enron, said, “Donations of this type reflect certain political realities which are followed by all major corporations,” and said Enron had earmarked the contributions weeks before they were actually delivered. The Democratic committee responded that it would not accept Enron’s contribution and was looking for an appropriate charity to redirect the money to benefit ex-Enron employees.

Enron was among the top 50 donor organizations in the 1999-2000 election cycle, according to the Washington, DC-based Center for Responsive Politics, which tracks political contributions. In the 2000 election, Enron contributed more than $2.4 million in individual, soft money and political action committee (PAC) contributions to federal candidates and parties.

The center noted that between 1989 and 1991, Enron Chairman and CEO Kenneth Lay contributed $793,110 to Republicans and $86,470 to Democrats. Overall, 72% of Enron’s contributions went to Republican organizations or candidates, according to the center.

Before Enron, Bennett represented President Bill Clinton in the sexual harassment lawsuit filed by Paula Jones. The lawsuit was ultimately dismissed.

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