PG&E Should Pay $2.25 Billion for California Blast, Agency Says

PG&E Corp. should pay $2.25 billion for violating safety laws prior to a 2010 natural gas pipeline explosion in California that killed eight people, the staff of the California Public Utilities Commission said.

The penalty would include money already spent on safety work upgrades as well as additional investments and should be paid for by shareholders, the CPUC’s Safety and Enforcement Decision said today in a statement. It would be the largest assessed by a state regulatory agency, according to the CPUC. The staff did not recommend that PG&E pay a fine to the state.