As companies bury power lines, consumers dig in against high rates

By James On Oct 17, 2023

Pacific Gas & Electric — one of the nation’s largest utilities whose equipment has sparked some of California’s deadliest wildfires — wants to bury power lines in some of the highest-risk areas to prevent devastating fires like the 2018 Paradise fire, which killed 85 people to prevent deaths.

But state regulators opposed the utility’s plan, saying it would take too long and cost $5.9 billion. The company’s customers — who already have some of the highest rates in the country — would have to pay for it.

Regulators want PG&E to protect many of its overhead power lines instead of burying them. The coverage approach is cheaper, but riskier. PG&E says burying a power line reduces the chance of a wildfire by 99% because it cannot be blown down by wind storms. The protective cover, which would better insulate the power line if it fell to the ground, would reduce that chance by 62%.

“We’re not going to live with a 35% risk,” said PG&E CEO Patti Poppe, who rounded her assessment downward. “Who wants to get on a plane that has a 35% chance of crashing?”

PG&E, which filed for bankruptcy protection in 2019 after having to pay more than $30 billion in damages due to wildfires caused by its equipment, is trying to convince regulators that its burial plan is better. The company submitted its plan to state regulators last year.

The California Public Utilities Commission, whose members are appointed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, is expected to rule on the issue in November. PG&E will argue its case in person before the commission on October 18.

What PG&E wants to do is unprecedented in scale and speed. The plan to bury 3,000 kilometers of power lines is part of a broader goal to lay 16,000 kilometers underground over the next decade. The case is being closely watched, not just in California but across the country, as more utilities weigh the risks versus the costs of burying power lines.

Most power lines in the country are above ground because it is cheaper to do it that way. But more and more utilities have been burying power lines in response to larger and more devastating natural disasters. In Florida, where hurricanes pose a greater threat than wildfires, about 45% of Florida Power and Light’s distribution system is underground, according to the company’s website.

Other major California utilities have also run power lines underground. Southern California Edison, the utility that covers much of central and southern California, says it plans to bury 600 miles of power lines by 2028. San Diego Gas & Electric has buried 145 miles of power lines since 2020 and plans to bury another 1,500 miles of power lines. 2031.

The problem could have consequences beyond the price of electricity. In the past year, seven of the 12 largest insurance companies doing business in California have halted or limited new business in the state due to wildfire risk.

On a recent afternoon, Ms. Poppe — CEO of PG&E since 2021 — visited a construction site between Sacramento and San Francisco, where crews were burying a section of overhead power lines. Ms Poppe was there to celebrate the company achieving its goal of burying at least 560 kilometers of power lines this year. A milestone that she believes is proof that the company can achieve its ambitious goals.

Ms. Poppe donned a hard hat and goggles to watch workers pour a concrete mixture into a freshly dug ditch along a rural two-lane road. Behind them, charred trees stood like sentinels on the brown hills, a testament to the 2020 LNU Complex Fire that destroyed nearly 1,500 structures and killed six people. That fire was started by lightning, not PG&E’s power lines, but it reminds us of the lasting damage wildfires can cause.

“One of the major criticisms of PG&E is that we have not adapted to the changing circumstances. Everyone says we should have seen these wildfires. Everyone says PG&E should have invested in infrastructure,” Ms. Poppe told The Associated Press. “And so, here we are. We have changed now and we are asking people to catch up with us.”

Critics scoff, noting that PG&E’s plan would boost profits for a company that pleaded guilty to 84 counts of manslaughter in connection with the 2018 wildfire that largely destroyed the town of Paradise. Their plan, which includes projects in addition to burying power lines, would increase customer rates by an average of nearly 18%, or $38.73 per month.

“I really find it hard to believe everything they say about their commitment to safety. They’re going to make a lot of money burying these lines,” said Ken Cook, president of the Environmental Working Group and a PG&E customer.

The Public Utilities Commission is considering two other plans that include both burying power lines and using protective coverings. The plans reduce the number of power lines PG&E could bury by at least half. One plan would increase rates by just over 12% and the other plan would increase rates by about 10%.

PG&E’s residential rates have more than doubled since 2006. It’s been even worse for low-income customers, whose rates have risen 170% over the same period, according to The Utility Reform Network, a ratepayer advocacy group. PG&E says electricity-only rates have risen an average of 4% per year since 2006.

While burying power lines is the most effective way to prevent wildfires, it is not a quick fix. It takes a long time compared to other methods due to the time required to plan and obtain the necessary permits and permissions to dig.

As of early 2018, both PG&E and Southern California Edison had protected only 5% of their fire hazard districts with underground lines or protective covers, according to the California Public Advocates Office, the state agency that represents customers before the state’s utilities. Commission.

Five years later, 55% of Southern California Edison’s equipment in high-risk fire districts is protected, compared to just 9% of PG&E’s system. Matt Baker, director of the California Public Advocates Office, said it’s good that PG&E is burying some power lines, but they also need to use other methods to protect more areas faster.

“We need to get it done as quickly as possible to reduce the risk as much as possible,” Mr Baker said. “It doesn’t matter if we have this incredibly gilded, amazing underground system if we’re going to have a hundred or so wildfires in the next decade that start to hit the other places because we’re not.” still there.”