PG&E files 10 year plan to underground 5,000 miles of power lines in California
PG&E files 10 year plan to underground 5,000 miles of power lines in California Oct 1 (Reuters) - PG&E PCG.N said on Thursday it filed a 10-year Electrical Undergrounding Plan with the California Office of Energy Infrastructure Safety, to improve grid safety and reliability in high-wildfire-risk areas across northern and central California.
The plan would place about 5,000 miles of electricity distribution lines underground from 2028 to 2037 — focusing on areas where undergrounding will likely reduce wildfire risks the most, the utility said
Work would span more than 30 counties
PG&E expects $117 billion in long-term benefits through wildfire prevention and reduced outages, avoiding roughly $6 billion in vegetation management, operations and maintenance costs
In September, PG&E said it would defer about $2 billion in spending for next year and launched a strategic review
Earlier, an amended state Senate bill raised concerns around wildfire liability costs
California's utilities have faced growing wildfire-related liabilities
PG&E, the parent of Pacific Gas and Electric Co, emerged from bankruptcy in 2020 after its equipment was linked to several deadly fires
(Reporting by Katha Kalia in Bengaluru; Editing by Joyjeet Das)
((Katha.Kalia@thomsonreuters.com;))