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U.S. judge orders PG&E to hold dividends to pay for efforts to reduce wildfire risks

Source(s): Thomson Reuters
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By Jim Christie

A U.S. judge said on Tuesday that PG&E Corp cannot resume dividends and must use the money to reduce wildfire risk in California, stopping short of more costly measures he proposed earlier this year.

[...]

The terms will, however, keep PG&E under the supervision of Judge William Alsup of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California and hold the company, which also is in Chapter 11 bankruptcy, to its target for clearing areas around its power lines of some 375,000 trees this year.

[...]

PG&E paid $798 million in dividends in 2017 and $925 million in 2016, a period in which the company did a poor job of clearing areas around its power lines of hazardous trees, according to Alsup.

Money meant for shareholders should have been spent on efforts to reduce wildfire risks in recent years, Alsup said at Tuesday’s hearing.

[...]

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Hazards Wildfire
Themes Private sector Governance
Country and region United States of America
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