PG&E Consultant Jim Hall of Hall & Associates Comments on Today's CPUC Report

WASHINGTON, Jan. 12, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- It has been abundantly clear that PG&E's past practices had serious problems – culturally and operationally.

When I arrived, I was tasked with helping PG&E's new leadership advance the efforts already underway to address these issues.   In the course of my work so far, I have recommended further actions which PG&E will be implementing to make the company a safer utility.  My team and I have had complete cooperation from the company, reviewed thousands of pages of documents and have had unfiltered access to PG&E's leadership at all levels.

I believe that PG&E is taking very seriously the recommendations given by the NTSB and CPUC, with which I wholeheartedly agree, and it has begun to make safety improvements, including:

• Refocusing its culture on safety as a priority
• Implementing a  pipeline testing and replacement program
• Establishing an accurate data system for its facilities
• Improving emergency planning and response processes, and
• Committing more than $1 billion in shareholder money to fund safety improvements

PG&E still has a lot of work to do, but I believe that it is on the right path.  It has accepted blame for the San Bruno accident and has allowed me to communicate my impressions of actions that it is taking to improve safety directly to the CPUC.  I believe that PG&E is committed to improving the safety of its pipeline system, and I am confident that the new senior leadership team has the drive and desire to establish a system safety culture throughout the company.  When they do, the public, PG&E's employees, and the entire industry will benefit.

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SOURCE Hill & Knowlton, Inc.