PG&E still lacks estimate on compensating wildfire victims

Pacific Gas & Electric Corp.'s top financial executives said during a bankruptcy meeting they still haven't determined when the utility can start compensating victims of recent wildfires started by the utility's equipment.

Victims' lawyers questioned PG&E executives during the meeting in San Francisco between the utility in bankruptcy court and its creditors.

The victims' lawyers wanted to know when the utility would file its plan to emerge from bankruptcy and pay the billions of dollars in claims pending against it. PG&E filed for bankruptcy in January, saying it faced at least $13 billion in legal claims from wildfire victims.

PG&E Chief Financial Officer Jason Wells said the utility doesn't yet know when it will file that plan.

Wells said the company recognizes it must act as quickly as possible, but said a lot of work remains to be done before PG&E can file its plan, including working with state lawmakers to pass new laws limiting its future wildfire liabilities.