Shares of SunEdison in New York were halted on the news at roughly $0.36 per share versus a 52-week high of $33.45.

"Our decision to initiate a court-supervised restructuring was a difficult but important step to address our immediate liquidity issues," says chief executive Ahmad Chatila.

"The court process will allow us to right-size our balance sheet and reduce our debt, providing the opportunity to support the business going forward while focusing on our core strengths.”

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