Frontier Communications reportedly considering filing for bankruptcy

Frontier Communications Corp. is reportedly contemplating filing for bankruptcy in March as part of a restructuring that would address its considerable debt.

Bloomberg is reporting that the Norwalk company, which provides telecom services in 29 states including Connecticut and New York, is exploring with its creditors ways to negotiate a prepackaged agreement before $356 million of debt payments come due on March 15.

Frontier carries a debt load of about $17.5 billion.

Bernie Han, who replaced longtime Frontier executive Daniel McCarthy as president and CEO in December, has been meeting with creditors and other advisers to discuss the plan, according to the report, which cited sources who asked for anonymity.

“Certain Frontier creditors signed confidentiality documents that restrict their ability to trade in preparation for the negotiations,” Bloomberg noted.

The Chapter 11 bankruptcy would allow Frontier to continue operating without interruption of telephone and broadband service to its customers. The Norwalk firm has 3.73 million broadband internet subscribers and 838,000 pay television subscribers in the U.S.