PG&E business customers could see rate increases in 2021 to pay for fire-prevention upgrades

Pacific Gas & Electric Co. on Monday told the Business Journal how much rates for commercial accounts could rise next year to help cover the costs of addressing issues with outdated equipment linked to major wildfires in recent years, including some in the North Bay.

For bundled business customers, the San Francisco-based utility expects a rate change of around 3%–8% for electric service and 2.5%–4% for natural gas, depending on company type, size and energy use. But the average monthly bill for commercial customers could increase or decrease, based on the timing of regulatory decisions, customer usage and where in Northern California the business is located, the utility said in a statement.

“PG&E is committed to providing ways for our residential and business customers to save energy and money,” the company said in the email.

These changes for business customers were recently approved along with rate hikes for residential customers, averaging 8%, or $13.44 more a month.

On Thursday, California power regulators approved the general rate case increases after two years of wrangling between PG&E and a variety of groups battling to limit how much of the financial burden customers should have to shoulder for the utility's long-running neglect of a grid that supplies power to about 16 million people in a sprawling area.

Old PG&E equipment is blamed for sparking wildfires in 2017–2018 that killed more than 120 people and destroyed more than 27,000 homes and other buildings. Those include the Tubbs Fire in Sonoma and Napa counties and the Carr Fire near Redding.

The damage caused PG&E to file for bankruptcy last year, leading the company to negotiate $25.5 billion in settlements with wildfire victims and others.

The utility exited bankruptcy this summer and is now seeking to upgrade its equipment and adopt other safety measures. Terms of the bankruptcy prevent the company from using the rate increases for other purposes.

Associated Press contributed to this report.

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