PG&E Corp.’s creditors have sweetened their offer to California wildfire victims, saying they are now prepared to pay $13.5 billion in cash upfront, according to a letter sent on Friday to state governor Gavin Newsom (D), Reuters reported. Current terms of the settlement deal, approved by a U.S. bankruptcy judge on Tuesday, call for half of the settlement to be financed with stock in a newly reorganized PG&E. In the letter, the bondholders led by Elliott Management said their latest proposals will make sure individual victims “are prioritized, as they should be” and will address demands Newsom had raised earlier. Newsom said on Dec. 13 that the settlement had lacked major changes in governance and tougher safety enforcement mechanisms mandated under the state wildfire statute. It would also leave the company with a weakened capital structure and “limited ability to withstand future financial and operational headwinds.” The new plan calls for no debt at the reorganized holding company and a new board with residents from California forming the majority of directors. It also allows for a takeover of PG&E by the state if the company is found to have caused any single future wildfire that destroys more than 5,000 structures. Read more.
Pacific Gas & Electric Co., the utility arm of PG&E Corp., has reached an agreement with several customer advocacy, labor and safety groups that calls for state regulators to allow the company to pass on to consumers some rate increases to fund safety improvements and other wildfire-prevention efforts, the Wall Street Journal reported. Friday’s agreement backs an increase in the average monthly bill of a PG&E residential customer by $5.69 a month, representing a 3.4 percent bump. The proposed rate change would take effect in 2020. PG&E will still need the approval of assigned administrative judges and the California Public Utilities Commission before enacting any changes. Read more. (Subscription required.)
