PG&E Fire Victim Trust Announces Sale of 35 million Shares of PG&E Stock

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The PG&E Fire Victim Trust (FVT) today sold 35 million shares of PG&E stock as part of its work to compensate the victims of fires in California from 2015 to 2018. The Trust is unique in its creation as it was funded with both cash and shares of stock when it was formally created in 2020 pursuant to PG&E’s Chapter 11 Plan of Reorganization.

“While the stock price has always been unpredictable, our work at the Trust has remained the same: to help fire victims recover from the devastation of the fires in California and move on with their lives,” said Trustee Cathy Yanni. “Every decision our team makes—including the sale of stock—is driven by this mission. The sale will help us continue resolving claims and getting money to fire victims equitably and efficiently.”

On July 1, 2020, 476,995,175 shares of common stock were transferred to the Trust followed on August 3, 2020, with an additional 748,415 shares transferred. Any sale, disposition or other transaction involving the Trust’s shares follow strict guidelines as outlined in filings with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

As of September 30, the Trust had issued determination notices to 82% of all claimants and paid claimants $5 billion. Less than 1% of all claims have been appealed. When the Trust was created, it was funded half in cash, and half in PG&E stock.

“The Trust is a limited fund, meaning it has finite money,” said Tim Jorstad, Trust CFO. “We are required to administer claims and pay eligible fire victims each an equal proportion of awards. The sale of stock ensures every victim will receive the same pro rata percentage as everyone else.”

The Fire Victim Trust:

The Fire Victim Trust evaluates, administers, processes and resolves eligible claims arising from the 2015 Butte Fire, 2017 North Bay Fires, and 2018 Camp Fire. Under the direction of the Trustee and Claims Administrator, the Fire Victim Trust provides an efficient and equitable process to review claims and compensate fire victims for both economic and noneconomic damages caused by these fires, including destruction or damage to real estate and personal property, additional living expenses, lost wages, business losses, personal injury or death and related medical expenses, and emotional distress. To date, the Fire Victim Trust has disbursed $5 billion to fire victims. For more information about the Fire Victim Trust, please visit www.firevictimtrust.com.