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California Utility PG&E to Pay $13.5 Billion to Settle Wildfire Claims

The California utility company reached the settlement sum as part of an agreement to file Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

California utility company PG&E has agree to pay $13.5 billion in claims to victims of deadly wildfires that ravaged the state in recent years. The settlement was reached during negotiations for the company to file Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The company has been blamed for the role its equipment played in sparking the 2015 Butte Fire, the 2017 Northern California fires, the 2018 Camp Fire, and the Oakland Ghost Ship warehouse fire in 2016. California Public Utilities Commission’s Safety and Enforcement Division (SED) also found that faulty PG&E equipment lead to the 2018 Camp Fire, which killed 85 people. “From the beginning of the Chapter 11 process, getting wildfire victims fairly compensated, especially the individuals, has been our primary goal,” PG&E CEO and President Bill Johnson said late Friday. “We want to help our customers, our neighbors and our friends in those impacted areas recover and rebuild after these tragic wildfires.”