Bankrupt California Utility Shedding More Than $40 Billion Worth of Green Energy Contracts
30th January 2019
Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) may shed more than $40 billion worth of power purchase agreements after the California utility was driven into bankruptcy by liabilities for sparking deadly wildfires, The Wall Street Journal reports.
PG&E wants the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in San Francisco to rule whether the company must honor $42 billion worth of contracts with about 350 different energy suppliers, mostly solar and wind plants.
The court’s decision could have a major impact on California’s renewable energy industry and power makeup. Many green energy suppliers only do business with PG&E, California’s largest utility. Shedding those contracts would likely drive those companies under and cripple California’s ability to meet energy goals set by the state government.
January 30th, 2019 at 15:33
Remember Enron?
Enron’s collapse resulted in hundreds of companies going bankrupt. If you have a contract to supply power to PG&E, and they void the contract, then the basis for the construction and operating loans you have become invalid and the notes get called for immediate payment.
You can be doing everything right, but still fail because you did business with a failure.
In Enron’s case, they were dirtbags cheered on by Wall Street. PG&E was encouraged (if not forced) to follow this path by the State of California. Watch banks and politicians dodging responsibility (again).