Exhibit 99
Entergy
639 Loyola Avenue
New Orleans, La 70113
Date: September 23, 2005 NEWS
RELEASE
For Release: Immediately
Contact: Yolanda Pollard (News Media) Michele Lopiccolo (Investor Relations)
800-844-8084 pin 1440471 (501) 607-3557
ypollar@entergy.com mlopicc@entergy.com
Entergy Corporation's New Orleans Subsidiary Files Chapter 11 Petition
Entergy Board Approves Debtor-in-Possession Financial Package
to Facilitate Business Continuity
New Orleans, La. - To protect its customers and ensure continued progress in
restoring power and gas service to New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, Entergy
Corporation (NYSE: ETR) announced today that its New Orleans subsidiary -
Entergy New Orleans, Inc. (Entergy New Orleans) - has filed a voluntary
petition for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.
Simultaneous with this filing, Entergy New Orleans filed a motion with the
Court for "debtor-in-possession" financing that contemplates Entergy
Corporation making loans up to $200 million to Entergy New Orleans to
address Entergy New Orleans' current liquidity crisis. The petition
also requests that up to $150 million of these loans be approved on an
interim basis. These funds will enable Entergy New Orleans to meet its
near-term obligations, including employee wages and benefits, payments
under power purchase and gas supply agreements, and its current efforts
to repair and restore the facilities needed to serve its electric and gas
customers.
Entergy Corporation trusts that the bankruptcy court will act swiftly to
approve its debtor-in-possession financing for Entergy New Orleans.
Entergy New Orleans, which provides electric and natural gas service to
customers within the city of New Orleans, is the smallest of Entergy's
five utility companies and represented about 7 percent of the consolidated
revenues and 3 percent of its consolidated earnings in 2004. Neither
Entergy Corporation nor any of Entergy's other utility and non-utility
subsidiaries were included in the bankruptcy filing.
"We took this action after careful review of the various options available
to preserve Entergy New Orleans' business over the near- and long-term"
said Dan Packer, Entergy New Orleans' chairman and chief executive officer.
"Due to our parent company's financial support, we can focus on the city's
reconstruction and rebirth, as those restoration efforts continue today."
This filing also is intended to address the very legitimate concern
expressed recently in a letter by U.S. Senators Mary Landrieu and David
Vitter from Louisiana to President Bush that the potential bankruptcy of
Entergy New Orleans would stall or cease restoration efforts in the City
as a result of creditor disputes that could arise in such a filing. In
making the filing for debtor-in-possession financing, it is Entergy's
hope and desire that Entergy New Orleans will be able to continue its
restoration efforts for the immediate future. The Court has set this
petition and motion for hearing on Monday, September 26.
As the City Council of New Orleans stated in a letter of support to
Entergy Chief Executive Officer J. Wayne Leonard this week, any long-term
solution, that provides for a financially viable utility at Entergy New
Orleans and protects customers from the massive restoration costs they
can ill afford to pay, must involve a substantial federal financial
commitment.
In a related action, a bill was introduced by Senators Landrieu and
Vitter in the U.S. Senate on September 22 that could provide $250
billion of financial aid to Louisiana, of which $2.5 billion was
earmarked to cover restoration costs of in-state utilities, including
Entergy's Louisiana subsidiaries.
Federal resources, in addition to reimbursement of certain costs covered
by insurance, are critical to restoring the system and restoring
Entergy New Orleans' financial health. Entergy is working with public
officials at the federal, state and local levels to try to secure vital
government assistance.
Entergy also announced it had taken steps in advance of this bankruptcy
filing by Entergy New Orleans to mitigate any effects of the filing
on the parent and its financially stronger subsidiaries. Prior to
the Entergy New Orleans' bankruptcy filing, Entergy obtained amendments
to the $2 billion bank revolving credit facility and other bank
facilities to eliminate the bankruptcy of Entergy New Orleans as
an Event of Default under the terms of those bank agreements.
Therefore, this bankruptcy filing by Entergy New Orleans will not
trigger a default under these bank facilities or other financing
obligations of Entergy and subsidiaries that are not party to this
bankruptcy filing.
Entergy Corporation is an integrated energy company engaged primarily
in electric power production and retail distribution operations.
Entergy owns and operates power plants with approximately 30,000
megawatts of electric generating capacity, and it is the
second-largest nuclear generator in the United States. Entergy
delivers electricity to 2.7 million utility customers in Arkansas,
Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. Entergy has annual revenues of
over $10 billion and approximately 14,000 employees.
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Entergy's online address is www.entergy.com
In this release and from time to time, Entergy makes statements
concerning its expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, goals,
strategies, and future events or performance. Such statements
are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Although
Entergy believes that these forward-looking statements and
the underlying assumptions are reasonable, it cannot provide
assurance that they will prove correct. Except to the extent
required by federal securities laws, Entergy undertakes no
obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking
statements, whether as a result of new information, future
events or otherwise. Forward-looking statements involve a
number of risks and uncertainties, and there are factors that
could cause actual results to differ materially from those
expressed or implied in these statements. Some of those
factors include, but are not limited to: resolution of
pending and future rate cases and other proceedings at
local and federal regulatory agencies, Entergy's ability
to manage its operation and maintenance costs, particularly
at its non-utility nuclear generating facilities, the
performance of Entergy's generating plants, and particularly
the capacity factor at its nuclear generating facilities,
prices for power generated by Entergy's unregulated
generating facilities, and the prices and availability of
power Entergy must purchase for its utility customers,
uncertainty regarding establishment of sites for spent
nuclear fuel storage and disposal, Entergy's ability to
develop and execute on a point of view regarding prices of
electricity, natural gas, and other energy-related
commodities, changes in the financial markets, particularly
those affecting the availability of capital and Entergy's
ability to refinance existing debt, execute its share
repurchase program, and fund investments and acquisitions,
actions of rating agencies, including changes in the ratings
of debt and preferred stock, Entergy's ability to purchase
and sell assets at attractive prices and on other attractive
terms, changes in utility regulation and in regulation of
the nuclear industry, the success of Entergy's strategies
to reduce tax payments, the effects of litigation and weather,
and uncertainties associated with efforts to remediate the
effects of Hurricane Katrina and recovery of costs
associated with restoration including Entergy's ability
to obtain financial assistance from governmental authorities
in connection with this storm.