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PG&E files for bankruptcy

January 29, 2019

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As the company warned it would do, PG&E filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Monday, as the utility faces billions of dollars in liabilities for involvement in California wildfires. [Cal Coast Times]

Earlier this month, PG&E provided a 15-day advanced notice for filing for bankruptcy. The company indeed filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy 15 days later.

PG&E is seeking court approval to access $5.5 billion in debtor-in-possession financing it says it has secured in order to support ongoing operations and safety initiatives. The utility also filed various motions in court relating to the company’s reorganization, include requests to continue paying employee salaries and providing healthcare and other benefits. PG&E also intends to pay suppliers in full under normal terms for the good and services they provided, the company stated in a press release.

“Through this process, we will prioritize what matters most to our customers and the communities we serve — safety and reliability,” PG&E Interim CEO John R. Simon said. “We believe that this process will make sure that we have sufficient liquidity to serve our customers and support our operations and obligations.”

Simon replaced CEO Geisha Williams, who resigned earlier this month at about the same time the company announced its intent to file for bankruptcy. Williams had served as PG&E’s CEO since March 2017.

Investigators have determined PG&E started multiple California wildfires in 2017, and the company is facing allegations that its equipment started the 2018 Camp Fire, the deadliest and most destructive blaze in state history. The company could face murder charges if found responsible for starting the Camp Fire, and it is already facing numerous lawsuits over the blaze.

PG&E says it believes the bankruptcy process will facilitate the orderly, fair and expeditious resolution of the companies’ liabilities that have arisen and will continue to arise in connection to the 2017 and 2018 Northern California wildfires. The company noted that, last week, Cal Fire released the results of its investigation into the 2017 Tubbs Fire, which concluded PG&E equipment did not cause the blaze.

In its bankruptcy filing, PG&E stated it faces damage claims over the wildfires that are estimated at tens of billions of dollars, according to The New York Times. The company stated in the filing that bankruptcy was the “only viable option.”

As of Sept. 30, PG&E had $51.7 billion in debt and $71.4 billion in assets, the company said in its bankruptcy filing.

PG&E’s stock price has fallen as low as $7.39 over the last week and is currently trading at around $14. In early November, PG&E shares were nearly $50.


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The only solution to this problem….the problem of PGE not paying for its many sins and perhaps no longer subsidizing the local economy for many millions per year….is slavery.


Legally enslave all the workers and management. Cut their wages and make it a crime to quit. Hire political consultants to tell them how to do their job and make sure they do it as instructed by the politicians. Tax and loot PGE each and every year until they’ve paid up the last dime they owe! Yes…I know, many of you are going to say, “that’s kind of what has been happening for decades now.” Well, I’m saying turn up the heat! Let them know who’s boss.


If we don’t adopt extreme measures….IE slavery….bankruptcy will basically be killing the goose who lays the golden eggs. That means no more omelettes for SLO County. Worse yet, it means no eggs for those who make their living organizing protests against PGE. We need slaves to support the local economy…..and I don’t mean tax-slaves. We’ve got plenty of those. I’m talking actual slaves, as outlined above.


Again, if a business is allowed to just quit, that means no more loot. That’s not right. We want loot, and lots of it!


Also, this sends a great big message to others companies who may be contemplating doing business in California. No doubt, everyone is lining up and offering to pay any amount of tax/fine/settlement in order that they can receive the same treatment that PGE is.


As for those who might wonder where the electricity will come from to power the planned electrification of California, especially if PGE goes bankrupt; Don’t worry! We’ll use batteries.


Now that we’ve solved this problem, let’s tackle healthcare. I say make slaves of doctors and nurses…..


3

Traveling abroad this summer we found it bothersome that Ca was considering possible fire restrictions on forest lands. Bothersome because states like AZ and NM and others had stage 3 restrictions in place which disallows entry onto forest land period. All of these states have experienced massive blazes started by various sources and know prevention is paramount. Further more passing thru the above states and entering Ca where the growth along the highways went from cut to the ground to several feet high in Ca. Something as simple a a cigarette could have been the cause of one of these blazes.

This leaves us a few conclusions here. Ca could care less about saving property and life. Income from park entries etc are more important than fire prevention or ignorance and special interest prevented land clearing due to well…stupidity. Keeping up on the plight of PG&E, I never read that they were convicted of starting the fires mentioned, yet they are on the hook for them. One article indicated few if any had home owners insurance, why not,that’s damn foolish? states like AZ and FL are hammered by lightning strikes each rainy season which starts fires. Suppose this had been the cause of these killer fires, who will you sue then one could ask.

It’s sad to read the thousand’s of responses to the many stories from news sources regarding Ca and PG&E’s impending doom. You’ll find 95% of the posters express absolute hatred toward Ca, its people, and its politics. Perhaps Ca has become blinded by arrogance and a feeling of invincibility, who knows, but something need to change.


3

You made a point about insurance. If you live in a flood plane you have to have flood insurance on top of your regular home insurance. Maybe if you live in a critical fir area additional insurance might be a way to approach the problem. Only problem is that the government would see a new source of revenue and probably completely over do it.


1

A judge has ordered PG&E to keep the lights on while going through this bankruptcy by any means necessary…meaning disregard all of the silly green energy rules mandated by this lunatic state of California….

If California continues down this heavy handed needless and short sighted green path we will very shortly see electricity interruptions like in central and south America…we will see fee increases like never before for less service….when this takes place remember one thing…we all voted for the people that are bringing it to us….


6

And if it keeps going the way it is heading, if you have anything at all, they will want that to pay for the others along with all of the other perks that they will be getting. So eventually what goes around will come around. Those that have it will end up at the back of the line that will be caught in grid lock, like the fwys., and not move at all because there will be no one to feed Democratic Donkey’s.


6

Apparently PG&E’s financial situation wasn’t so dire as to not be able to pay their outgoing CEO, the one who has lead the company to have to file bankruptcy”, a 2.5 million dollar “Thank You”. We all know the ones who will suffer here are the “real” ratepayers.


8

Funny how they have no problems taking care of themselves. I read nothing about how the victims were going to be taken care of? But after a second reading I did get it figured out that in the end those victims who have lost everything will probably get little to nothing from PG&E. Bankruptcy protection should be a crime.


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