U.S. Bancorp Sues Altria Group for $363.5M

Even with a new name, Phillip-Morris can?t seem to stay out of court. Altria, the non-cigarette-based arm of the tobacco giant, is getting sued by U.S. Bancorp for $363.5 million. U.S. Bancorp, according to a story in the Minneapolis-St.Paul Business Journal, alleges that Altria has defaulted on loans they used to buy two power plants in New England.

According to the suit, it played out like this: Altria?s Phillip Morris Capital Corp. took out a U.S. Bancorp loan to buy plants in Rhode Island and Maine. The plants were leased to Calpine, a California-based power company. Things went squirrelly when Calpine filed for bankruptcy in December of 2005. U.S. Bancorp alleges that Altria has refused to take over the financial responsibility on its power plants.

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