California Cuts PG&E’s and Edison’s Profits for Grid Investments
California regulators reduced the profit that utilities are allowed to make on infrastructure investments in an effort to rein in soaring electricity bills.
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The move Thursday by the California Public Utilities Commission underscores its oft-conflicting policy goals: while the state is keen for power providers to fortify a grid that’s sparked catastrophic wildfires, doing so costs billions of dollars. Those expenses are typically passed on by utilities owned by PG&E Corp., Edison International and Sempra to homes and businesses. State regulators are also trying to minimize further inflation of utility bills.
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On a 4-1 vote, returns for PG&E, Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas & Electric — the state’s main investor-owned utilities — were set at a range of 9.78% to 10.03% compared to the national average of about 9.72%.
PG&E had asked for 11.3%, SoCal Edison wanted 11.75% and SDG&E called for 11.25%.