PG&E Engages Minority-Owned Banks to Execute $400 Million Bond Sale

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Apr 17, 2012, 12:30 ET

SAN FRANCISCO, April 17, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) selected Loop Capital Markets, an African American-owned investment bank headquartered in Chicago, to be one of four joint lead managers, along with Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, and Wells Fargo Securities, for a $400 million offering of 30-year senior notes that closed yesterday.

The company also engaged two other diverse firms – woman-owned MFR Securities in New York and service disabled veteran-owned Mischler Financial Group in Southern California – to join BNY Mellon Capital Markets, LLC and RBC Capital Markets as co-managers for the deal.

"We are proud to work with these firms to complete this transaction," said Kent Harvey, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of PG&E Corporation. "The low-cost financing this provides represents a great outcome for our customers, and it's another example of the way PG&E is continuing to leverage the capabilities of diverse suppliers in keeping with our strong commitment to supplier diversity."

This bond transaction represents the third that PG&E has completed with a minority-owned investment bank as a lead manager. The bonds mature on April 15, 2042, and bear an interest rate of 4.45 percent – a record-low 30-year coupon for PG&E. The bonds are rated "A3" by Moody's Investors Service and "BBB" by Standard & Poor's. Proceeds from the bonds will be used primarily for general corporate purposes, including repaying a portion of the utility's outstanding commercial paper.

"We were delighted to work with PG&E on this important transaction," said Jim Reynolds, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Loop Capital Markets. "The company was patient in accessing the markets and really benefitted from enthusiastic participation by a broad range of investors seeking to have a high-quality bond in their portfolio."

"Supporting the development of women-, minority-, or disabled veteran-owned investment banks is an important step in helping meet diversity procurement goals," said Commissioner Timothy Alan Simon of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC). "The CPUC will continue to work with California utilities to assure that diverse businesses fully participate in our state's economic gains."

Diversity and inclusion have long been hallmarks of PG&E's heritage. Earlier this month, PG&E was named Corporation of the Year by the Northern California Minority Supplier Development Council for the utility's commitment to minority business development. The award is among a number of recent accolades for PG&E, which spent a record $1.6 billion with diverse suppliers in 2011.

"Diverse companies offer a wealth of innovation," said Michael R. Peevey, President of the CPUC, which encourages utilities to procure a percentage of goods and services from diverse companies. "Procuring from diverse suppliers only strengthens PG&E's supply network and creates jobs and economic growth for the communities it serves."

For information on PG&E's supplier diversity program or to learn how to apply to become a certified diverse supplier, visit www.pge.com/supplierdiversity/.

Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation (NYSE:PCG), is one of the largest combined natural gas and electric utilities in the United States. Based in San Francisco, with 20,000 employees, the company delivers some of the nation's cleanest energy to 15 million people in Northern and Central California. For more information, visit http://www.pge.com/about/newsroom/ and www.pgecurrents.com.

SOURCE Pacific Gas and Electric Company