A U.S. judge said yesterday that PG&E Corp cannot resume dividends and must use the money to reduce wildfire risk in California, stopping short of more costly measures he proposed earlier this year, Reuters reported. The new criminal probation terms for PG&E are modest compared with ones the judge had in mind in January and that PG&E said could have cost upwards of $150 billion. The terms will, however, keep PG&E under the supervision of Judge William Alsup of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California and hold the company, which also is in chapter 11 bankruptcy, to its target for clearing areas around its power lines of some 375,000 trees this year. PG&E’s probation stems from its felony conviction after a deadly 2010 natural gas pipeline blast in San Bruno, California, near San Francisco, that killed eight people and injured 58 others. PG&E filed for bankruptcy protection on Jan. 29 in anticipation of liabilities from wildfires, including a catastrophic 2018 blaze, the Camp Fire. It killed 86 people in the deadliest and most destructive wildfire in California history. At a January hearing, Judge Alsup, who is overseeing PG&E’s probation, said that he felt compelled to propose additional probation terms in the aftermath of the Camp Fire. San Francisco-based PG&E expects its equipment will be found to have caused the blaze. The probation process is separate from San Francisco-based PG&E’s bankruptcy. Read more.
In related news, four outside law firms have billed Pacific Gas and Electric Co. at least $84 million for legal services related to the company’s January bankruptcy filing, the Recorder reported. The utility company disclosed its legal spend in a series of court filings last month, as it sought approval from U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Dennis Montali to continue employing the law firms. PG&E is seeking to retain Cravath, Swaine & Moore; Weil, Gotshal & Manges; Jenner & Block; and Keller & Benvenutti as its legal advisers for the Chapter 11 proceedings. PG&E listed more than $50 billion in estimated liabilities when it filed for chapter 11 protection. According to the court docket, Montali is scheduled to consider PG&E and the firms’ motions at a hearing April 9. Read more.
