PG&E 2011 Annual Report Download - page 13

associated compliance costs, including the cost of emission allowances and offsets, that the Utility may incur
under cap and trade regulations;
• changes in customer demand for electricity (‘‘load’’) and natural gas resulting from unanticipated population
growth or decline in the Utility’s service area, general and regional economic and financial market conditions,
the development of alternative energy technologies including self-generation and distributed generation
technologies, or other reasons;
• the occurrence of unplanned outages at the Utility’s large hydroelectric or nuclear generation facilities and the
ability of the Utility to procure replacement electricity if hydroelectric or nuclear generation operations were
unavailable;
• the results of seismic studies the Utility is conducting that could affect the Utility’s ability to continue
operating Diablo Canyon or renew the operating licenses for Diablo Canyon; the impact of new NRC orders
or regulations to implement various recommendations made by the NRC’s task force following the March
2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan that caused significant damage to nuclear facilities in Japan; and the
impact of new legislation, regulations, or policies that may be adopted in the future to address the operations,
security, safety, or decommissioning of nuclear facilities, the storage of spent nuclear fuel, seismic design,
cooling water intake, or other issues;
• the impact of federal or state laws or regulations, or their interpretation, on energy policy and the regulation
of utilities and their holding companies, including how the CPUC interprets and enforces the financial and
other conditions imposed on PG&E Corporation when it became the Utility’s holding company, and whether
the outcome of proceedings and investigations relating to the Utility’s natural gas operations affects the
Utility’s ability to make distributions to PG&E Corporation in the form of dividends or share repurchases;
• whether the Utility’s newly installed electric and gas SmartMeterTM devices and related software systems and
wireless communications equipment continue to accurately and timely measure customer energy usage and
generate billing information, whether the Utility recovers costs associated with analog meters that customers
choose instead of digital meters, whether the Utility can successfully implement ‘‘dynamic pricing’’ retail
electric rates that are more closely aligned with wholesale electricity market prices, and whether the Utility
can continue to rely on third-party vendors and contractors to support the advanced metering system;
• whether the Utility is able to protect its information technology, operating systems and networks, including the
advanced metering system infrastructure, from damage, disruption, or failure caused by cyber-attacks,
computer viruses, and other hazards; and whether the Utility’s security measures are sufficient to protect the
confidential customer, vendor and financial data contained in such systems and networks from unauthorized
access and disclosure;
• the extent to which PG&E Corporation or the Utility incurs costs in connection with third-party claims or
litigation, that are not recoverable through insurance, rates, or from other third parties;
• the ability of PG&E Corporation, the Utility, and counterparties to access capital markets and other sources
of credit in a timely manner on acceptable terms;
• the impact of environmental remediation laws, regulations, and orders; the extent to which the Utility is able
to recover compliance and remediation costs from third parties or through rates or insurance; and the
ultimate amount of costs the Utility incurs in connection with its natural gas compressor station located near
Hinkley, California, which are not recoverable through rates or insurance;
• the loss of customers due to various forms of bypass and competition, including municipalization of the
Utility’s electric distribution facilities, increasing levels of ‘‘direct access’’ by which consumers procure
electricity from alternative energy providers, and implementation of ‘‘community choice aggregation,’’ which
permits certain types of governmental bodies to purchase and sell electricity for their local residents and
businesses; and
• the outcome of federal or state tax audits and the impact of changes in federal or state tax laws, policies, or
regulations, such as The Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010
(the ‘‘Tax Relief Act’’).
For more information about the significant risks that could affect the outcome of these forward-looking
statements and PG&E Corporation’s and the Utility’s future financial condition and results of operations, see the
discussion in the section entitled ‘‘Risk Factors’’ below. PG&E Corporation and the Utility do not undertake an
obligation to update forward-looking statements, whether in response to new information, future events, or
otherwise.
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