Washington weighs in on Westinghouse bankruptcy | News … – Aiken Standard

A high ranking committee consisting of White House cabinet members and possibly President Donald Trump himself are positioning themselves to weigh in on the Westinghouse bankruptcy case.

In court records filed late Monday, the Committee on Foreign Investments in the United States, or CFIUS, stated the potential sale of Westinghouse or its assets could be subject to the panel's review.

Consisting of various White House cabinet members, the CFIUS is authorized to review transactions which could result in foreign persons or entities acquiring U.S. businesses, according to the U.S. Treasury website.

CFIUS' mission is to determine if there are any national security issues resulting from said transactions, the treasury website states.

A subsidiary of Japanese-held Toshiba, Westinghouse filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on March 29.

Westinghouse is the lead contractor at financially struggling nuclear plants under construction in Fairfield County (V.C. Summer) and Burke County, Georgia (Plant Vogtle).

Documents filed May 31 with the S.C. Office of Regulatory Staff, or ORS, state Westinghouse's nuclear interests at V.C. Summer and Vogtle have become a "financial drain," eclipsing any profits Westinghouse is earning in other core areas of its business.

A CFIUS review of any potential Westinghouse transaction "could affect the transactions' timing, terms and ability to be completed," according to its June 5 court filing.

Folliwing CFIUS review, the matter could also be reviewed personally by President Donald Trump, the filing continues.

"Section 721 of the Defense Production Act of 1950 ... authorizes the President, acting through CFIUS, to review any merger, acquisition, or takeover 'which could result in foreign control of any person engaged in interstate commerce in the United States.'" court records state.

CFIUS consists of a who's who of White House cabinet members, including the Secretaries of the Treasury (who chairs the group), State, Defense, Commerce, Energy and Homeland Security, as well as the Attorney General and other federal officials, according to the court filing.

The Director of National Intelligence and Secretary of Labor are ex officio members, meaning they are nonvoting. Five White House officials also serve as observers.

Co-owners SCANA Corp. and Santee Cooper are temporarily funding day-to-day operations at V.C. Summer per an extension of an interim financing agreement that expires June 26.

A similar agreement at Vogtle that was set to expire June 3 and extended to June 5 has been extended again, this time to 5 p.m. Friday, June 9, Georgia Power spokesman Jacob Hawkins said Tuesday.

"Georgia Power continues work to complete its full-scale schedule and cost-to-complete analysis and work with the project Co-owners (Oglethorpe Power, MEAG Power and Dalton Utilities) and the Georgia Public Service Commission to determine the best path forward for customers," Hawkins said in a statement.

This is a developing story and will be updated throughout the day.

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Washington weighs in on Westinghouse bankruptcy | News ... - Aiken Standard

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