PG&E; May Sell Gas-Fired Plants

SFChronicle March 20, 1996 pg. C3

Pacific Gas and Electric Co. yesterday said it plans to divest half of its fossil-fueled generation plants during the next six and a half years as part of a plan to make California's electricity market more competitive. The announcement came in a filing with the California Public Utilities Commission, which requested the step by PG&E; and Southern California Edison in a decision last December to restructure California's energy market. PG&E; owns and operates seven fossil-fuel plants in Northern and Central California, all powered by natural gas. Together they produced 18 percent of all electricity PG&E; sold last year and have the capacity to serve more than 8 million people. Although neither utility provided details of its divestiture plans, James Hendry, adviser to CPUC Commissioner P. Gregory Conlon, said their filings were a significant step in the right direction. The commission asked the two huge California utilities to voluntarily divest themselves of the power plants to prevent them from dominating the market. Currently PG&E; and Edison produce three quarters of the power sold in their service territories. State regulators were aware that in England and Wales, which set up a competitive power pool in 1990, prices have not fallen significantly because two giant firms control most of the generating capacity. * * *

8/10/96

---

Gascape's Reference Database© | Index | Home

©