Jacob Klein
After many attempts by the company to stave it off, Insight Terminal Solutions (ITS) has been declared bankrupt in a Kentrucky court. ITS had been at the helm of the effort to store and transport coal through the old Oakland Army Base for years now.
John Siegel, CEO of the now bankrupt ITS, hoped to secure funding from various sources, including Utah’s Throughout Infrastructure Fund, in order to retain control of the company and push for the coal port in Oakland. Thanks to the leadership of Utah activists and organizations in particular, this never came to be.
The bankruptcy court gave control of ITS over to lender and private equity firm Autumn Wind, which is based in Los Angeles. Although Autumn Wind has communicated no interest in coal, it is unclear what its intentions will be. It is possible that Autumn Wind will just try to sell off the assets.
There are some who think Autumn Wind will still try to push through on coal. If this ends up being the case, we have a strong community to fight this back once again. Moreover, we know that coal is a dying industry. Japan is moving away from coal-fired plants. And with a respiratory pandemic still raging, it compounds the public health risks. As long as there’s a threat of coal and coal dust in our neighborhoods, we will be fighting it off.
Photo by Brooke Anderson Photography.