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Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
PG&E Proposal Will Power California's Growth and Resilience While Stabilizing Customer Bills
General Rate Case Proposes Smallest Percentage Increase in a Decade Residential Combined Bills Forecast to Be Lower in 2026, Flat in 2027 Compared to Today OAKLAND, Calif., May 15, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) proposed energy system improvements to drive California's economic growth and increase climate change resilience. The company submitted this proposal, its 2027-2030 General Rate Case (GRC), to California regulators. PG&E and the state's other investor-owned utilities are required to make multi-year cost proposals every four years. PG&E's application outlines a strategy to deliver customer bill stability while improving safety. PG&E is requesting its smallest GRC percentage increase in a decade, made possible in part by reducing costs and passing on savings to customers. Over the past three years, the company has implemented new processes and technologies, reducing operating and capital costs by about $2.5 billion. Based on current information, if the proposal is approved in full, PG&E expects total residential combined gas and electric bills in 2027 to be flat compared to 2025 bills. Additionally, if electric demand increases—as the California Energy Commission forecasts—bills could go down because the costs of operating the system would be shared by more customers. PG&E also forecasts no further electric rate increases in 2025, and projects that residential electric rates and average combined bills will be lower in 2026. That's because cost recovery currently in rates will expire and be removed from rates, helping to offset proposed increases including the 2027 GRC. "At PG&E, we want what you want—safe, reliable, clean and affordable energy for all. We are on a journey to transform PG&E and improve how we serve our customers at a lower cost," said PG&E Corporation CEO Patti Poppe. Stabilizing Bills Through 2030 If fully approved, total residential combined-use bills are expected to be flat in 2027 compared to current bills. Although PG&E's GRC proposal, in isolation, would increase bills by a maximum of 3.6% in 2027, total bills are expected to be flat. This is because other costs will come out of bills in 2026, including those related to the 2023 GRC, wildfire mitigation and storm recovery. PG&E's goal is to stabilize bills through 2030. Factors that could deliver additional customer savings, beyond the GRC proposal, include PG&E's $15 billion Department of Energy loan guarantee that could save customers $1 billion over the life of the loan, achieving a better credit rating which would lower future borrowing costs, and energy demand growth from electric vehicles and data centers. Bills for individual customers may vary based on where they live, energy used, rate plan, discount programs and other factors. Improving Service for Customers Among the ways PG&E's proposal would increase safety and reliability for customers: Deliver a more modern grid to meet expected historic growth in electricity demand from new homes, businesses, electric vehicles and AI-focused data centers. This includes preparing the grid to serve 3 million EVs by 2030 and ramping up to 20,000 new customer connections per year by 2030. Improve wildfire safety through proven layers of wildfire protection. This includes replacing 760 miles of powerlines with stronger poles and covered powerlines; placing 307 miles of powerlines underground in the highest fire-risk areas in 2027, reducing risk on those lines by 98%; installing an additional 114 weather stations for better forecasting and situational awareness; and improving tree trimming by bundling work to reduce costs and minimize impacts for customers. Increase clean energy delivery and system resilience to extreme weather impacts. This includes investing in lower-cost solar and battery energy storage to diversify and complement the grid's existing power plant fleet and protect customers from fuel cost volatility; installing more microgrids in remote areas to reduce wildfire risk and lower costs by removing powerlines and decreasing the need for maintenance; accelerating EV adoption to increase vehicle-to-grid capabilities so EVs can serve as mobile batteries during peak summer energy demand periods; and modernizing existing clean hydroelectric plants to improve safety and reliability, including spillway improvements. Strengthen the gas system to keep customers and communities safe and improve air quality. This includes replacing 164 miles of distribution pipeline and upgrading internal pipeline inspections processes to continue safe operations and extend the lifespan of pipelines; responding to more than 600,000 calls to locate and mark lines to reduce the likelihood of third-party pipeline dig-ins; and using advanced mobile leak detection technology to quickly find and fix gas leaks for safety and to reduce methane emissions. About the GRC Process The regulatory process allows for input from a variety of stakeholders and the public before the California Public Utilities Commission issues a final decision. Customer rates are not expected to change related to this proposal until January 2027 at the earliest. Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-looking Statements This news release contains forward-looking statements that are not historical facts, including statements about PG&E's beliefs, expectations, estimates, future plans, and strategies, including regarding customer bills, wildfire mitigation, and grid modernization. These statements are based on current expectations and assumptions, which management believes are reasonable, and on information currently available to management, but are necessarily subject to various risks and uncertainties. In addition to the risk that these assumptions prove to be inaccurate, factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements include factors disclosed in PG&E Corporation's and PG&E's joint Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024, their most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2025, and other reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which are available on PG&E Corporation's website at and on the SEC's website at PG&E Corporation and PG&E undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether due to new information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent required by law. About PG&EPacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation (NYSE: PCG), is a combined natural gas and electric utility serving more than sixteen million people across 70,000 square miles in Northern and Central California. For more information, visit and View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Pacific Gas and Electric Company
Yahoo
26-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
PG&E foresees ‘bright future' with lower prices, higher demand
This story was originally published on Utility Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily Utility Dive newsletter. Pacific Gas & Electric expects to file a rate case with its lowest requested rate increase in a decade as the company continues to make strides toward cutting costs and improving its credit rating, CEO Patti Poppe told investors during a Thursday earnings call. Increased demand from prospective data center customers — which grew sharply — should help the company reduce residential rates, and PG&E does not expect to be heavily impacted by tariffs, according to Poppe. Company leaders held up a recent rating upgrade by Moody's as proof of their progress, but cautioned that further improvements in the company's credit score are unlikely pending legislation to reform California's overwhelmed wildfire insurance fund. With growing demand and possible legislative reforms in the works, Poppe expressed optimism about PG&E's future even though the San Francisco-based company saw its first-quarter earnings decline slightly. Customers may remain skeptical of the company's ability to deliver, but PG&E is on a path toward lower costs and more modest electric bills, she said. 'We're interrupting a pattern here in California for affordability for customers,' she said. 'We know our customers don't feel that yet, so there is a doubt that we can deliver on this but we are able to deliver, and we've delivered this year.' The company's upcoming general rate case, which PG&E plans to initiate next month, will request the lowest increase in electric rates in a decade, Poppe said — and it doesn't include the effects of other potential cost-saving developments, including the improved credit rating by Moody's and growing electrical demand. PG&E's regulatory framework, Poppe said, should allow the company to cut overall customer bills by 1% to 2% for every gigawatt of new demand from data centers. PG&E's data center pipeline grew from 5.5 GW at the beginning of the year to 8.7 GW at the end of the first quarter, Poppe said. Most of the interest within PG&E's service area does not come from large AI-training data centers, but from more modestly sized, 100-MW range data centers that support existing AI applications for various companies, according to Poppe. 'These are a variety of smaller projects that will go through because that demand for compute power is real, particularly here in the Bay Area where we have this density of technical talent who can leverage AI,' Poppe said. 'So this trend is absolutely real for us.' The company also plans to cut costs by undergrounding power lines in regions where PG&E currently spends significant sums of money on vegetation management, and anticipates limited impacts from the recent spate of tariffs announced by the Trump administration. Most of the company's materials and supplies come from domestic sources, with the company's biggest areas of tariff exposure coming from the purchase of computer hardware, smart grid equipment and other electric equipment like transformers, according to Carolyn Burke, chief financial officer for PG&E. Poppe indicated that company leaders have been working with state lawmakers on a solution to shore up the state's wildfire fund, which insures participating utilities, including PG&E, against catastrophic wildfire losses. Frequent, severe wildfires, including the Eaton Fire in Los Angeles County earlier this year, have strained the fund's financial resources. Poppe said she was unable to share details of what a solution could look like, but told investors that she has continued to emphasize the importance of a financing plan that does not require contributions from the utility's investors. Access to low-cost capital, she said, remains critical to affordable electric rates. In the meantime, PG&E is conducting a review of its de-energized and deactivated electric lines to ensure they haven't overlooked the possibility they could start a wildfire in light of recent allegations that an idled power line owned by Southern California Edison may have sparked the Eaton Fire, Poppe said. Given rising consumer costs and recession fears, Poppe said it was essential for the company to continue to make the case that investments in initiatives such as undergrounding power lines will lead to lower power bills in the long-run. 'When the Legislature is looking at all this simultaneously, it's pretty hard to absorb all of it at once,' she said. 'So it's important that we continue ... an active conversation and make sure that we're sharing the information that we have and continuing to demonstrate that we don't have to choose between customers and investors.' Recommended Reading Moody's upgrades PG&E on reduced credit risks from wildfires
Yahoo
13-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
PG&E raises 2025 core earnings forecast on higher electricity rates
(Reuters) - PG&E Corp on Thursday raised its adjusted core earnings forecast for 2025, as the power company benefits from lower operating expenses and higher electricity rates. Last month, the California Public Utilities Commission approved another request from the company to raise electricity prices after a series of similar hike approvals last year. The utility said it recorded a rate base growth of 10.5% in 2024. U.S. electric utilities are pushing for more hikes, as rising demand from data centers, manufacturers and other industries such as transportation has put tremendous pressure on grids. The company said it added nearly 14,000 new customers in 2024 to its electric grid system. "In 2024, we connected more new customers to our grid than we have in decades," PG&E Corporation CEO Patti Poppe said. As of February, the company saw a two gigawatt (GW) increase in its data center pipeline from July last year. PG&E is the parent company of Pacific Gas and Electric Company, an energy company that serves 16 million Californians across a 70,000-square-mile service area in Northern and Central California. The Oakland, California-based company raised its full-year forecast for adjusted core earnings to between $1.48 and $1.52 per share, up from $1.47 to $1.51 previously. Analysts expect earnings of $1.49 per share, according to data compiled by LSEG. In 2024, the company's operating expenses fell 8.3% to $19.96 billion compared to last year. On an adjusted basis, PG&E reported a fourth-quarter core profit of 31 cents per share, in line with analysts' estimates. Shares of the company rose 1% in premarket trading. Sign in to access your portfolio
Reuters
13-02-2025
- Business
- Reuters
PG&E raises 2025 core earnings forecast on higher electricity rates
Feb 13 (Reuters) - PG&E Corp (PCG.N), opens new tab on Thursday raised its adjusted core earnings forecast for 2025, as the power company benefits from lower operating expenses and higher electricity rates. Last month, the California Public Utilities Commission approved another request from the company to raise electricity prices after a series of similar hike approvals last year. The utility said it recorded a rate base growth of 10.5% in 2024. U.S. electric utilities are pushing for more hikes, as rising demand from data centers, manufacturers and other industries such as transportation has put tremendous pressure on grids. The company said it added nearly 14,000 new customers in 2024 to its electric grid system. "In 2024, we connected more new customers to our grid than we have in decades," PG&E Corporation CEO Patti Poppe said. As of February, the company saw a two gigawatt (GW) increase in its data center pipeline from July last year. PG&E is the parent company of Pacific Gas and Electric Company, an energy company that serves 16 million Californians across a 70,000-square-mile service area in Northern and Central California. The Oakland, California-based company raised its full-year forecast for adjusted core earnings to between $1.48 and $1.52 per share, up from $1.47 to $1.51 previously. Analysts expect earnings of $1.49 per share, according to data compiled by LSEG. In 2024, the company's operating expenses fell 8.3% to $19.96 billion compared to last year. On an adjusted basis, PG&E reported a fourth-quarter core profit of 31 cents per share, in line with analysts' estimates. Shares of the company rose 1% in premarket trading.
