Update: Bankruptcy Court Orders Transition Of Bankrupt Texas Retail Electric Provider's Remaining Customers To POLRs

Approving relief sought by the Trustee of Brilliant Energy LLC (the "Debtor"), a federal bankruptcy court ordered the mass transition of Brilliant Energy's remaining customers -- which are commercial customers -- to the provider(s) of last resort (POLR)

Brilliant Energy's motion for authority to drop its commercial customers to POLR had been exclusively first reported by EnergyChoiceMatters.com earlier this week

As more fully discussed in our prior story (click here), the Trustee determined that there were no qualified or otherwise viable bids for the purchase of Brilliant Energy's book of commercial customer contracts. Commercial customers will be given an opportunity to switch to another REP before the POLR drop, as discussed further below

The mass transition of the Brilliant Energy commercial customers to POLR does not impact any residential customers. As previously reported by EnergyChoiceMatters.com, Brilliant's residential customer book was purchased by Evolve Retail Energy LLC d/b/a Octopus Energy US. The sale of the residential customer contracts is expected to close with residential contracts transferred and transitioned to the purchaser between May 24, 2021 and May 28, 2021

Specifically, with respect to Brilliant Energy's commercial customer book, the court ordered that:

• ERCOT shall initiate the mass transition of the Debtor’s non-residential customers pursuant to 16 Administrative Code § 25.43 and the ERCOT Protocols on May 26, 2021. ERCOT shall take the necessary steps to ensure that the Debtor’s non-residential customers are transitioned to providers of last resort (the 'POLR providers') no later than May 28, 2021. The Trustee shall take all steps necessary to cooperate in the mass transition of the Debtor’s nonresidential customer accounts to a POLR provider.

• The Trustee shall notify the Debtor’s non-residential customers and brokers of the anticipated POLR transition date, to encourage such parties to voluntarily transition to another retail energy provider prior to the POLR transition date, and to waive any termination fees associated with a voluntary transition by a non-residential customer initiated on or after the date of the Motion. Such notice shall comply with 16 Texas Administrative Code § 25.43(t).

• The Debtor’s agreements with DTE Energy Trading, Inc. for the purchase of wholesale energy shall be deemed terminated upon the transition of all of the Debtor’s customers to another retail electric provider or a POLR. The Trustee is authorized to enter into any agreements with DTE Energy Trading, Inc. necessary or desirable to further evidence such termination.