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* Reliant Resources avoided a possible bankruptcy filing after receiving a four-year extension on $5.9 billion in bank borrowings and garnering $300 million in additional credit. The company had to pledge all of its available assets as collateral to get the funding (The Wall Street Journal, 4/2).

CenterPoint Energy Resources, the gas and pipelines unit of CenterPoint Energy, tapped the bond-market for $650 million and the long tenor and tight pricing surprised some industry officials. "It's a pretty cheap bond deal," says one investor of the 7.875% coupon and the 10-year maturity. "The access and pricing are important," adds Scott Taylor, analyst at Standard & Poor's. S&P rated the deal BBB. A spokesman for Houston-based CenterPoint declined comment.

Entergy Mississippi, a regulated utility unit of Entergy issued $100 million of five-year first-mortgage bonds last week when attractively low interest rates offered a refinancing opportunity too good to pass up. Morgan Stewart, Entergy spokesman, says the utility's ability to take advantage of low interest rates was a driving force behind the issuance. He notes Entergy was able to lock in a five-year yield of 4.363%. Proceeds will be used to pay down short-term debt and fund working capital expenses including the management of variable fuel costs, says Stewart.

Aquila launched a foray into the B loan market last Thursday with a $530 million deal led by Credit Suisse First Boston. The Kansas City, Mo.-based player originally had been looking to replace a $650 million revolver maturing April 12 in the traditional bank market, but changed its plans to join the growing band of power players tapping the institutional loan market, according to one official.

IDACORP and its regulated subsidiary, Idaho Power, both completed the renewal of separate 364-day revolving credit facilities last week. IDACORP inked a $175 million credit line, replacing a maturing $350 million facility, while Idaho Power lined a $200 million credit line, replacing a similar sized deal.

Lehman Brothers is preparing a shortlist of bidders looking to acquire a 600 MW gas-fired merchant plant in Fort Bend County, Texas. A group of non-recourse lenders, led by ABN AMRO, is looking to sell the Brazos Valley plant because NRG Energy recently handed the keys to the lenders. The auction is being closely watched by project lenders, many of whom expect to be left holding thousands of megawatts of power projects as other cash-strapped developers follow NRG's lead and walk away from partially completed projects, according to market officials. The project's total cost was $359 million.

Williams Companies is talking to banks about a $800-900 million loan to replace the high-profile facility led by Lehman Brothers and Berkshire Hathaway last summer that set the high watermark for funding rates in the distressed energy sector with an effective yield of 34%.

At least two lenders are reportedly stalling on agreeing to Reliant Resources make-or-break $5.9 billion debt refinancing package due this Friday, increasing the chances that the Houston power company could file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection by week-end. One market official says Citibank and WestLB are two creditors presently refusing to ink terms. Calls to Citi were not returned immediately and WestLB officials declined comment.

A consortium led by Mexican construction company Empresas ICA Sociedad Controladora has retained Westdeutsche Landesbank to arrange $840 million in project-level financing to develop a new hydroelectric power plant in Mexico, the largest public works project to date under the administration of President Vincente Fox, according to bankers.

StoneCap Group, a newly formed Houston investment boutique launched by two Dynegy alumni, is looking to make its first investment in the distressed U.S. power and gas sector this summer. The limited partnership is presently talking to potential investors, says Hugh Tarpley, co-founder and former executive v.p. at Dynegy responsible for mergers and acquisitions. Tarpley launched StoneCap with Milton Scott, formerly executive president and chief administrative officer at Dynegy.