PG&E Says Its Equipment Likely Ignited Camp Fire
PG&E faces billions of dollars of potential liabilities related to the wildfires if an investigation determines its equipment caused them.
The company took a $10.5 billion charge for the 2018 Camp Fire and an additional $1 billion charge related to 2017 Northern California wildfires.
PG&E said it had taken a total of $14 billion in pretax charges for the 2018 Camp Fire and the 2017 Northern California wildfires to date.
The charges represent a portion of the previously announced estimate of potential wildfire liabilities, which could exceed more than $30 billion, PG&E said.
Last November’s deadly Camp Fire destroyed the Northern California town of Paradise and killed 86 people
Federal filings showed on Wednesday that the power utility had delayed a safety overhaul of a high-voltage transmission line, a prime suspect behind the deadliest wildfire in California’s history.
(Reporting by John Benny in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D’Silva)