Sparks fly

摘要

LOCAL UTILITIES' predictable businesses and steady dividends have earned them the moniker "widow-and-orphan shares". Not in California. Pacific Gas & Electric Company (pg&e), its biggest electric utility, declared bankruptcy in January, citing $3obn of potential liabilities arising from its role in causing deadly wildfires. Its share price is down by nearly 90% since 2017. It recently shut off power to millions of Californians to prevent its installations from sparking new blazes. Customers and politicians fumed. Meanwhile, a battle for control of the firm rages on.