PG&E拟推迟约20亿美元工程以应对加州山火责任改革搁置

PG&E Corp. plans to defer about $2 billion of work next year as part of a strategic review of its businesses, a move that comes after it said a proposed revamp of California’s wildfire response didn’t do enough to protect the company and its peers from the cost of such disasters.

The gas and power utility announced its plan on Wednesday, a day after the California Assembly adjourned without passing the wildfire legislation. Governor Gavin Newsom had pushed for measures that would shift liabilities related to the blazes away from publicly traded utilities, but he failed to win consensus among lawmakers on some key measures that investors had been closely watching.

“We have to take action to protect our customers, to prepare for the future and design PG&E to serve California in such a way that it’s not hampered by the sub-investment grade credit ratings that we currently have because of our exposure to this wildfire framework,” PG&E Chief Executive Officer Patti Poppe said in an interview.

The legislation has spurred sharp swings in the share prices of California’s biggest investor-owned utilities this week. PG&E and Edison International plunged 20% or more on Monday due to the bill, introduced Saturday, lacking all the provisions that Newsom and the utilities had wanted. They closed up at least 6% on Tuesday after it became clear it would not be voted on.

California utility executives have long warned shareholders that legislative inaction on wildfire reform could result in credit-rating downgrades and higher borrowing costs that would ultimately be passed onto customers. The utilities had hoped the bill would not omit several provisions, including a prohibition on insurers suing power firms that have caused wildfires as a way to recoup payments to policyholders.

PG&E hasn’t finalized the specific projects that will be deferred, Poppe said. But it will reconsider timelines to connect new generation resources, new large-load customers including data centers and new home construction projects, among other things, she said.

Read More: California Lawmakers File Wildfire Plan, Without Newsom Asks

The utility is still committed to bringing online the first 1.8 gigawatts of announced data center projects, but the announcement “certainly slows the pipeline,” Poppe said.

PG&E will still invest around $11.4 billion in California next year, she said. The $2 billion cost deferral will reduce its debt financing needs, which she said will help prevent an impact on customer rates.

The strategic review will be guided by a committee composed of four independent directors, who will evaluate how the company can best be organized and financed to serve its customers, PG&E said in a statement released Wednesday.

The utility reaffirmed its full-year 2026 earnings guidance, although it plans to reevaluate its long-term earnings per share growth rate alongside its 2028 to 2030 capital investment and rate base outlooks.