At least one of these guys is almost certainly going to file Chapter 11 very soon. Bankruptcy experts said the utilities may have been trying to force the hand of state officials by intentionally provoking yesterday's emergency order. The utilities say they need higher rates to get out of the hole. Kenneth Klee, a law professor at the University of California at Los Angeles who also specializes in bankruptcy matters, agreed that the utilities' lawyers may have engineered this entire episode to lay the groundwork for more favorable bankruptcy terms. Don't sell them short.
Nobody wants to take the blame.
California Power Shuffle Energy officials in California remained on alert yesterday as they took stock of the state's power demand and supply a day after a Stage Three electricity alert was declared. Here is a look at how California's electricity distribution system is set up and what steps the regulatory body can take in times of extreme need. The ISO forecasts electricity usage throughout the state and monitors actual peak usage. All power consumers are asked to conserve energy. Customers who have gotten lower rates for agreeing to go off-line when a power crunch hits are ordered to reduce or shut off their power.