FairPoint nears bankruptcy exit

Independent telco FairPoint Communications was due back for its final bankruptcy court hearing in New York City today after riding some good news into 2011 that may bode well for the company to soon emerge from bankruptcy protection. If the bankruptcy court approves FairPoint’s restructuring plan, the company will be able to exit Chapter 11 protection about 14 months after filing.

FairPoint ended 2010 with the news that it was able to meet broadband availability requirements for its New England markets that were set forth in its merger conditions after the North Carolina company bought former Verizon Communications properties in Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire. FairPoint’s ability to meet the broadband deadline had been in doubt as recently as mid-December, after the company already had once renegotiated its deal conditions when it filed for bankruptcy protection.

The last regulatory hurdle for FairPoint to re-emerge was cleared in Vermont in late December, when state regulators approved the company’s restructuring plan. Regulators in Maine and New Hampshire had approved the plan earlier. FairPoint executives actually were back in Vermont yesterday appealing to the state senate to loosen some of the bureaucratic red tape and requirements the company has to submit to before it changes is pricing policies. The Burlington Free Press reported that a FairPoint executive told a senate committee that the regulatory process hurts the company’s ability to quickly respond to the overtures of competitors.