PG&E Corp. will record $2.5 billion in pre-tax expenses in the second quarter related to wildfires in California, the electric utility said on Thursday, two weeks after state officials blamed its power lines for sparking the fires.
Wall Street analysts said PG&E’s initial estimate for charges related to the fires that killed 46 people last fall was within expectations and not as high as some investors had feared. Shares of California’s biggest utility – which have fallen more than 40 percent since the fires broke in October – climbed 2 percent on Thursday afternoon.
PG&E has received some 200 complaints related to the fires on behalf of at least 2,700 plaintiffs, and could be the subject of related investigations, it said in a regulatory filing. Lawmakers have said that Pacific Gas & Electric was considering bankruptcy protection if it faces large penalties because of the wildfires, according to local media reports.
PG&E said the total wildfire-related charges it could incur could be greater than $2.5 billion. The utility did not have access to evidence collected by fire department officials, it added.
California fire department officials said earlier this month its investigators had found “evidence of alleged violations of state law” by Pacific Gas & Electric.
From Reuters: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-pg-e-outlook/pge-takes-2-5-billion-charge-related-to-california-wildfires-idUSKBN1JH1CM