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Enron Corp. - University of California | Office of The President

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<strong>Enron</strong> to lose its investment-grade credit rating and bringing the <strong>Enron</strong> Ponzi scheme to a halt. Thus,<br />

secretly behind the scenes, <strong>Enron</strong>, Andersen, Vinson & Elkins and certain <strong>of</strong> <strong>Enron</strong>'s bankers worked<br />

feverishly in late 3/01 to yet again restructure several <strong>of</strong> the SPEs with which <strong>Enron</strong> had done illicit<br />

transactions to artificially boost its pr<strong>of</strong>its and high debt, especially the Raptors. However, because<br />

<strong>Enron</strong> and its bankers, accountants and lawyers were running out <strong>of</strong> tricks to manipulate <strong>Enron</strong>'s<br />

finances, they were forced to repeat the restructuring done at year-end 00 by recapitalizing the Raptor<br />

SPEs in a fashion that again simply increased the number <strong>of</strong> shares <strong>of</strong> stock <strong>Enron</strong> would have to<br />

issue if its stock declined to now lower trigger prices. This action represented a massive double-<br />

down bet on the price <strong>of</strong> <strong>Enron</strong> stock, which put tremendous pressure on the participants in the<br />

scheme to keep <strong>Enron</strong> stock trading at high levels.<br />

314. Nevertheless, <strong>Enron</strong> and its bankers continued to assure investors and the markets that<br />

<strong>Enron</strong>'s core wholesale energy and retail energy businesses were very strong and that its broadband<br />

content delivery business would still be able to show significant, albeit slower growth, that its<br />

broadband intermediation business actually was benefitting from the volatility and decline <strong>of</strong><br />

broadband access prices and that the worst was over with respect to <strong>Enron</strong>'s Dabhol power plant<br />

situation in India.<br />

315. On 4/3/01, <strong>Enron</strong> issued a release regarding a new long-term energy management<br />

contract with J.C. Penney:<br />

<strong>Enron</strong> Energy Services, a subsidiary <strong>of</strong> <strong>Enron</strong> <strong>Corp</strong>., and J.C. Penney<br />

Company, Inc., ... announced today a long-term energy management agreement<br />

covering the purchase <strong>of</strong> more than $600 million in energy-related commodities.<br />

316. On 4/17/01, <strong>Enron</strong> reported better-than-expected 1stQ 01 results:<br />

<strong>Enron</strong> <strong>Corp</strong>. announced today an 18 percent increase in diluted earnings per<br />

share to $0.47 for the first quarter <strong>of</strong> 2001 from $0.40 a year ago. Results for the<br />

quarter include:<br />

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