PG&E Fibrillating; 3 Top Execs Gone, Value Down 50%, Looking At Bankrtupcy From Toll Of Fires

EDIT

It’s widely believed that PG&E power lines sparked the state’s most devastating wildfire ever, the Camp Fire, which destroyed 18,500 structures and killed 86 people last November. Last June, state fire officials officially blamed PG&E for power lines starting several 2017 wildfires in the state. That liability translates into a significant impact on PG&E’s bottom line. It has pushed the utility to explore “filing some or all of its business for bankruptcy protection as it faces billions of dollars in liabilities related to fatal wildfires in 2018 and 2017,” Reuters reported.

The utility is also reportedly exploring whether it should sell off its natural gas division. And PG&E could also receive financial assistance should the state legislature pass a bill allowing the utility to pass the wildfire costs onto its customers — something it has been lobbying to make happen.

PG&E’s uncertain financial future accompanies a slew of other challenges, such as three top executives announcing that they will be retiring this month, as well as a strong proposal put forward by U.S. District Judge William Alsup on Wednesday, urging PG&E to reinspect its entire grid and remove or trim all trees that could fall on its power lines. The company has two weeks to respond.

PG&E is “skulking around in the shadows, potentially filing bankruptcy,” Mike Danko, an attorney with Danko Meredith law firm in California, told ThinkProgress. Danko has been involved in numerous successful settlements and verdicts against PG&E. The utility’s actions so far, he said, show it appears to be more concerned with retaining shareholder value than compensating wildfire victims. Since the Camp Fire began on November 8, PG&E’s stock value has plummeted 50 percent. Three insurance companies — Allstate, State Farm, and USAA — have filed lawsuits against the utility over the Camp Fire, and PG&E is facing at least 100 lawsuits from survivors.

EDIT

https://thinkprogress.org/experts-worry-california-utilitys-financial-woes-will-impact-wildfire-preparation-climate-action/