Enron dropped its arbitration case proceedings and Maharashtra dropped its countersuit. Despite these agreements, the project still could not continue. A host of groups, including unions, activists, and others, filed 24 legal actions in an effort to stop the project.
A recent Indian investigative committee report exposed an 'utter failure of governance' - bribery, lack of competitive bidding, secrecy, etc. - by both the Indian federal government and two successive state governments as they rushed the Enron project through.
Among the law firms with major roles in the Enron case are Weil Gotshal & Manges, which represents Enron; Shearman & Sterling, which represents Citigroup, one of the company's lead banks; and Davis Polk & Wardwell, among those representing the other lead bank, J. P. Morgan Chase.
Back in 2004, US multinational giants General Electric and Bechtel bought Enron's 65 per cent stake in the controversial Dabhol Power Company. While the cap fixed was at $300 million, the settlement reached was of $305 million dollars. The Indian Government paid Bechtel $160 million and paid GE $145 million.
However, the World Bank found issues with the feasibility of the project and hence refused to give a loan for the same. Instead the project was financed by Enron, Bechtel, GE and five major lenders, one of which was located in India: Enron Power Corp. - $223 million.
Enron entered India as an investor in the Indian power sector in 1992, through the operating entity Dabhol Power Company. The project was a natural gas-fired power plant estimated to generate 2,184 megawatts.
Lori Loughlin, Giannulli attorney led Enron prosecution team.
Essay: "Behind the Scenes at the Enron Trial: Creating the Decisive Moments" (By John C. Hueston, lead trial attorney for the prosecution in U.S. v Jeffrey Skilling and Kenneth Lay) 44 American Criminal Law Review 197-239 (Spring 2007)(pdf).
Today, Skilling is back in Houston, where he is working on a start-up firm in the energy industry, Veld Applied Analytics. According to its website, the company is developing “sophisticated analytical tools to establish and monitor valuation” of oil and natural gas assets.
The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled against continuing with the over 17-year judicial inquiry into allegations of corruption in setting up of the Enron-promoted Dabhol power plant in Maharashtra.
The Enron scandal drew attention to accounting and corporate fraud as its shareholders lost $74 billion in the four years leading up to its bankruptcy, and its employees lost billions in pension benefits. Increased regulation and oversight have been enacted to help prevent corporate scandals of Enron's magnitude.
Dabhol power plant is a 1,967MW combined-cycle power station located 160km south of Mumbai in the Ratnagiri District of Maharashtra, India. It is one of the most controversial power projects built in India.