- San Francisco to explore buying chunk of troubled utility
- Municipal takeovers could create service disparities
PG&E Corp.’s looming bankruptcy could lead to an unprecedented spectacle — a major American power company being taken over by the state or broken up for city governments to run.
More often, it works the other way. Local governments have a long history of selling off municipal utilities, switching them from the public sector to the private. Witness the ongoing efforts to privatize Puerto Rico’s troubled power authority.
But with PG&E planning to file for bankruptcy this month — the result of mounting wildfire liabilities that could reach $30 billion — a government takeover has become a real possibility. In fact, the future of the power giant that has long reigned over a broad swath of California could very well involve a complete dismantling of its system and a takeover by multiple municipalities.
Bloomberg Markets
By David R Baker and Mark Chediak
January 16, 2019, 3:00 AM MST