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Commitments and Contingencies | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2015
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract] |
Commitments and Contingencies | Commitments and Contingencies Third-Party Power Purchase Agreements SCE entered into various agreements, which were approved by the CPUC and met critical contract provisions (including completion of major milestones for construction), to purchase power and electric capacity, including:
• | Renewable Energy Contracts – California law requires retail sellers of electricity to comply with a RPS by delivering renewable energy, primarily through power purchase contracts. Renewable energy contracts generally contain escalation clauses requiring increases in payments. As of December 31, 2015, SCE had 93 renewable energy contracts which expire at various dates through 2038.
• | Qualifying Facility Power Purchase Agreements – Under the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 ("PURPA"), electric utilities are required, with exceptions, to purchase energy and capacity from independent power producers that are qualifying co-generation facilities and qualifying small power production facilities ("QFs"). As of December 31, 2015, SCE had 71 QF contracts.
• | Other Power Purchase Agreements – SCE has entered into agreements with third parties, including 6 combined heat and power contracts, 9 tolling arrangements and 11 resource adequacy contracts which expire at various dates through 2025.
At December 31, 2015, the undiscounted future minimum expected payments for the SCE power purchase agreements that have been approved by the CPUC and have completed major milestones for construction were as follows:
(in millions) | Renewable Energy Contracts |  | QF Power Purchase Agreements |  | Other Purchase Agreements
2016 | $ | 1,234 |  |  | $ | 223 |  |  | $ | 741 |
2017 | 1,417 |  |  | 189 |  |  | 758 |
2018 | 1,472 |  |  | 149 |  |  | 589 |
2019 | 1,562 |  |  | 87 |  |  | 503 |
2020 | 1,605 |  |  | 39 |  |  | 459 |
Thereafter | 21,439 |  |  | 69 |  |  | 1,022 |
Total future commitments | $ | 28,729 |  |  | $ | 756 |  |  | $ | 4,072 |
The table above includes contractual obligations for power procurement contracts that met the critical contract provisions as of December 31, 2015. Additionally, as of December 31, 2015, SCE has signed contracts that have not met the critical contract provisions that would increase contractual obligations by $29 million in 2016, $166 million in 2017, $257 million in 2018, $352 million in 2019, $747 million in 2020 and $16.4 billion thereafter, if all principal provisions are completed. Many of the power purchase agreements that SCE entered into with independent power producers are treated as operating and capital leases. The following table shows the future minimum lease payments due under the contracts that are treated as operating and capital leases (these amounts are also included in the table above). Due to the inherent uncertainty associated with the reliability of the fuel source, expected purchases from most renewable energy contracts do not meet the definition of a minimum lease payment and have been excluded from the operating and capital lease table below but remain in the table above. The future minimum lease payments for capital leases are discounted to their present value in the table below using SCE's incremental borrowing rate at the inception of the leases. The amount of this discount is shown in the table below as the amount representing interest.
(in millions) | Operating Leases |  | Capital Leases
2016 | $ | 374 |  |  | $ | 1 |
2017 | 354 |  |  | 1 |
2018 | 250 |  |  | 2 |
2019 | 186 |  |  | 2 |
2020 | 174 |  |  | 2 |
Thereafter | 1,745 |  |  | 10 |
Total future commitments | $ | 3,083 |  |  | $ | 18 |
Amount representing executory costs |  |  |  | (7 | )
Amount representing interest |  |  |  | (3 | )
Net commitments |  |  |  | $ | 8 |
Operating lease expense for power purchase agreements was $1.7 billion in 2015, $1.7 billion in 2014 and $1.5 billion in 2013 (including contingent rents of $1.1 billion in 2015, $944 million in 2014 and $843 million in 2013). The timing of SCE's recognition of the lease expense conforms to ratemaking treatment for SCE's recovery of the cost of electricity and is included in purchased power. At December 31, 2015 and 2014, SCE's net capital leases reflected in utility plant on the consolidated balance sheets were $8 million and $203 million, including accumulated amortization of $2 million and $46 million, respectively. SCE had $1 million and $7 million included in "Other current liabilities" and $7 million and $196 million included in "Other deferred credits and other long-term liabilities" at December 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively, representing the present value of the minimum lease payments due under these contracts recorded on the consolidated balance sheets. Other Lease Commitments The following summarizes the estimated minimum future commitments for SCE's noncancelable other operating leases (excluding SCE's power purchase agreements discussed above):
(in millions) | Operating Leases – Other
2016 | $ | 68 |
2017 | 52 |
2018 | 44 |
2019 | 35 |
2020 | 27 |
Thereafter | 271 |
Total future commitments | $ | 497 |
Operating lease expense for other leases (primarily related to vehicles, office space, nuclear fuel storage space and other equipment) were $80 million in 2015, $96 million in 2014 and $78 million in 2013. Certain leases on office facilities contain escalation clauses requiring annual increases in rent. The rentals payable under these leases may increase by a fixed amount each year, a percentage over base year, or the customer price index. Other Commitments The following summarizes the estimated minimum future commitments for SCE's other commitments:
(in millions) | 2016 |  | 2017 |  | 2018 |  | 2019 |  | 2020 |  | Thereafter |  | Total
Other contractual obligations | $ | 181 |  |  | $ | 140 |  |  | $ | 101 |  |  | $ | 56 |  |  | $ | 59 |  |  | $ | 547 |  |  | $ | 1,084 |
Costs incurred for other commitments were $182 million in 2015, $90 million in 2014 and $153 million in 2013. SCE has fuel supply contracts for Palo Verde which require payment only if the fuel is made available for purchase. SCE also has commitments related to maintaining reliability and expanding SCE's transmission and distribution system. The table above excludes other contractual obligations that have not met the critical contract provisions. As of December 31, 2015, SCE has signed capacity reduction contracts that have not met critical contract provisions and are, therefore, not included in the table above. These contracts would increase the contractual obligations by $10 million in 2017, $98 million in 2018, $82 million in 2019, $79 million in 2020 and $483 million thereafter, if all principal provisions are completed. Indemnities Edison International and SCE have various financial and performance guarantees and indemnity agreements which are issued in the normal course of business. Edison International and SCE have provided indemnifications through contracts entered into in the normal course of business. These are primarily indemnifications against adverse litigation outcomes in connection with underwriting agreements, and indemnities for specified environmental liabilities and income taxes with respect to assets sold. Edison International's and SCE's obligations under these agreements may or may not be limited in terms of time and/or amount, and in some instances Edison International and SCE may have recourse against third parties. Edison International and SCE have not recorded a liability related to these indemnities. The overall maximum amount of the obligations under these indemnifications cannot be reasonably estimated. SCE has indemnified the City of Redlands, California in connection with Mountainview's California Energy Commission permit for cleanup or associated actions related to groundwater contaminated by perchlorate due to the disposal of filter cake at the City's solid waste landfill. The obligations under this agreement are not limited to a specific time period or subject to a maximum liability. SCE has not recorded a liability related to this indemnity. Contingencies In addition to the matters disclosed in these Notes, Edison International and SCE are involved in other legal, tax and regulatory proceedings before various courts and governmental agencies regarding matters arising in the ordinary course of business. Edison International and SCE believe the outcome of these other proceedings will not, individually or in the aggregate, materially affect its results of operations or liquidity. San Onofre Related Matters Replacement steam generators were installed at San Onofre in 2010 and 2011. On January 31, 2012, a leak suddenly occurred in one of the heat transfer tubes in San Onofre's Unit 3 steam generators. The Unit was safely taken off-line and subsequent inspections revealed excessive tube wear. Unit 2 was off-line for a planned outage when areas of unexpected tube wear were also discovered. On June 6, 2013, SCE decided to permanently retire Units 2 and 3. Settlement of San Onofre CPUC Proceedings In November 2014, the CPUC approved the San Onofre OII Settlement Agreement that SCE had entered into with TURN, ORA, SDG&E, the Coalition of California Utility Employees, and Friends of the Earth. The San Onofre OII Settlement Agreement resolved the CPUC's investigation regarding the Steam Generator Replacement Project at San Onofre and the related outages and subsequent shutdown of San Onofre. The San Onofre OII Settlement Agreement does not affect proceedings related to recoveries from third parties described below, but does describe how shareholders and customers will share any recoveries. Challenges related to San Onofre CPUC Proceedings A federal lawsuit challenging the CPUC's authority to permit rate recovery of San Onofre costs and an application to the CPUC for rehearing of its decision approving the San Onofre OII Settlement Agreement were filed in November and December 2014, respectively. In April 2015, the federal lawsuit was dismissed with prejudice and the plaintiffs in that case appealed the dismissal to the Ninth Circuit in May 2015. Both the appeal and the application for rehearing remain pending. In April 2015, the Alliance for Nuclear Responsibility ("A4NR") filed a petition to modify the CPUC's decision approving the San Onofre OII Settlement Agreement based on SCE's alleged failures to disclose communications between SCE and CPUC decision-makers pertaining to issues in the San Onofre OII. The petition seeks the reversal of the decision approving the San Onofre OII Settlement Agreement and reopening of the OII proceeding. Subsequently, TURN and ORA filed responses supporting A4NR's petition to reopen the San Onofre OII proceeding. In August 2015, ORA filed its own petition to modify the CPUC's decision approving the San Onofre OII Settlement Agreement seeking to set aside the settlement and reopen the San Onofre OII proceeding. SCE and SDG&E responded to this petition in September 2015. Both petitions remain pending before the CPUC. In July 2015, a purported securities class action lawsuit was filed in federal court against Edison International, its Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer and was later amended to include SCE's former President as a defendant. The lawsuit alleges that the defendants violated the securities laws by failing to disclose that Edison International had ex parte contacts with CPUC decision-makers regarding the San Onofre OII that were either unreported or more extensive than initially reported. The complaint purports to be filed on behalf of a class of persons who acquired Edison International common stock between March 21, 2014 and June 24, 2015. Subsequently and also in July 2015, a federal shareholder derivative lawsuit was filed against members of the Edison International Board of Directors for breach of fiduciary duty and other claims. The federal derivative lawsuit is based on similar allegations to the federal class action securities lawsuit and seeks monetary damages, including punitive damages, and various corporate governance reforms. An additional federal shareholder derivative lawsuit making essentially the same allegations was filed in August and was subsequently consolidated with the July 2015 federal derivative lawsuit. In October 2015, a shareholder derivative lawsuit was filed in California state court against members of the Edison International Board of Directors for breach of fiduciary duty and other claims, making similar allegations to those in the federal derivative lawsuits discussed above. In November 2015, a purported securities class action lawsuit was filed in federal court against Edison International, its Chief Executive Officer and Treasurer by an Edison International employee, alleging claims under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act ("ERISA"). The complaint purports to be filed on behalf of a class of Edison International employees who were participants in the Edison 401(k) Savings Plan and invested in the Edison International Stock Fund between March 27, 2014 and June 24, 2015. The complaint alleges that defendants breached their fiduciary duties because they knew or should have known that investment in the Edison International Stock Fund was imprudent because the price of Edison International common stock was artificially inflated due to Edison International's alleged failure to disclose certain ex parte communications with CPUC decision-makers related to the San Onofre OII. Edison International and SCE cannot predict the outcome of these proceedings. Ex Parte Communications In February 2015, SCE filed in the San Onofre OII proceeding a Late-Filed Notice of Ex Parte Communication regarding a meeting in March 2013 between an SCE senior executive and the president of the CPUC, both of whom have since retired from their respective positions. In August 2015, the OII Administrative Law Judge issued a ruling that nine additional communications should have been reported in addition to a March 2013 communication that SCE had reported in February 2015. In December 2015, the CPUC issued a final decision that imposed a penalty of $16.74 million in connection with eight communications that the decision finds should have been reported and two violations of a CPUC ethical rule (reflected in "Operation and maintenance" on the consolidated statements of income). NRC Proceedings As part of the NRC's review of the San Onofre outage and proceedings related to the possible restart of Unit 2, the NRC appointed an Augmented Inspection Team to review SCE's performance. In December 2013, the NRC finalized an Inspection Report in connection with the Augmented Inspection Team's review and SCE's response to an earlier NRC Confirmatory Action Letter. The NRC's report identified a "white" finding (low to moderate safety significance) for failing to ensure that MHI's modeling and analysis were adequate. In November 2014, the NRC closed the "white" finding, confirming that there were no additional issues identified that could impact SCE's ability to safely decommission San Onofre. The NRC also issued an Inspection Report to MHI containing a Notice of Nonconformance for its flawed computer modeling in the design of San Onofre's steam generators. On October 2, 2014, the NRC's Office of Inspector General ("OIG") published a report on the NRC's oversight of SCE's evaluation process for the RSGs, which was used to determine whether changes in the design of a component would require an amendment to the operating license of a nuclear power plant. The OIG determined that the NRC "missed opportunities" in connection with its 2009 inspection of SCE's evaluation process, and concluded that without further review of information concerning SCE's evaluation conclusions, there is no assurance that the NRC reached the correct conclusion in its 2009 inspection that San Onofre did not need a license amendment for its steam generator replacement. In July 2015, the NRC issued a final decision regarding SCE's compliance with the license amendment regulatory process related to the RSGs, finding the issue to be moot, given the permanent cessation of operation of San Onofre. In March 2015, the NRC issued a lessons learned report in which it restated earlier NRC inspection findings that SCE properly concluded that the replacement steam generators at San Onofre did not require a formal license amendment prior to installation using a common NRC process for replacement components. Certain anti-nuclear groups and individual members of Congress have alleged that SCE knew of deficiencies in the steam generators when they were installed or otherwise did not correctly follow NRC requirements for the design and installation of the replacement steam generators, all of which SCE has vigorously denied, and have called for investigations, including by the Department of Justice. SCE cannot predict when or whether ongoing proceedings by the NRC will be completed or whether inquiries by other government agencies concerning how the RSG project was conducted will be initiated or reopened. NEIL Insurance Claims San Onofre carries accidental property damage and carried accidental outage insurance issued by Nuclear Electric Insurance Limited ("NEIL"). Through August 30, 2014, the San Onofre owners had submitted approximately $433 million in claims (SCE's share of which is approximately $339 million) under the accidental outage insurance. The accidental outage insurance at San Onofre has been canceled prospectively as a result of the permanent retirement. In October 2015, San Onofre owners reached an agreement with NEIL to resolve all insurance claims arising out of the failures of the San Onofre replacement steam generators for a total payment by NEIL of $400 million (SCE's share of which is approximately $313 million). According to the terms of the San Onofre OII Settlement Agreement, the settlement proceeds will be applied to reimburse the costs of pursuing the recovery and then allocated 95% to customers and 5% to SCE ($20 million pre-tax). SCE customers' portion of amounts recovered from NEIL has been distributed to SCE customers via a credit to SCE's ERRA account. MHI Claims SCE is also pursuing claims against Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. and a related company ("MHI"), which designed and supplied the RSGs. MHI warranted the RSGs for an initial period of 20 years from acceptance and is contractually obligated to repair or replace defective items with dispatch and to pay specified damages for certain repairs. MHI's stated liability under the purchase agreement is limited to $138 million and excludes consequential damages, defined to include "the cost of replacement power;" however, limitations in the contract are subject to applicable exceptions both in the contract and under law. SCE has advised MHI that it believes one or more of such exceptions apply and that MHI's liability is not limited to $138 million. MHI has advised SCE that it disagrees. In October 2013, SCE sent MHI a formal request for binding arbitration under the auspices of the International Chamber of Commerce in accordance with the purchase contract seeking damages for all losses. In the request for arbitration, SCE alleges contract and tort claims and seeks at least $4 billion in damages on behalf of itself and its customers and in its capacity as Operating Agent for San Onofre. MHI has denied any liability and has asserted counterclaims for $41 million, for which SCE has denied any liability. Each of the other San Onofre owners sued MHI, alleging claims arising from MHI's supplying the faulty steam generators. These litigation claims have been stayed pending the arbitration. The other co-owners (SDG&E and Riverside) have been added as additional claimants in the arbitration. The arbitration is being conducted pursuant to a confidentiality order issued by the arbitration panel. Hearings are expected to occur in the first half of 2016 and a decision may be issued by year-end 2016. SCE, on behalf of itself and the other San Onofre co-owners, has submitted seven invoices to MHI totaling $149 million for steam generator repair costs incurred through April 30, 2013. MHI paid the first invoice of $45 million, while reserving its right to challenge it and subsequently rejected a portion of the first invoice and has not paid further invoices, claiming further documentation is required, which SCE disputes. SCE recorded its share of the invoice paid (approximately $35 million) as a reduction of repair and inspection costs in 2012. Under the San Onofre OII Settlement Agreement, recoveries from MHI (including amounts paid by MHI under the first invoice), if any, will first be applied to reimburse costs incurred in pursuing such recoveries, including litigation costs. To the extent SCE's share of recoveries from MHI exceed such costs, they will be allocated 50% to customers and 50% to SCE. The first $282 million of SCE's customers' portion of such recoveries from MHI will be distributed to customers via a credit to a sub-account of SCE's Base Revenue Requirement Balancing Account ("BRRBA"), reducing revenue requirements from customers. Amounts in excess of the first $282 million distributable to SCE customers will reduce SCE's regulatory asset represented by the unamortized balance of investment in San Onofre base plant, reducing the revenue requirement needed to amortize such investment. The amortization period, however, will be unaffected. Any additional amounts received after the regulatory asset is recovered will be applied to the BRRBA. The San Onofre OII Settlement Agreement provides the utilities with the discretion to resolve the NEIL and MHI disputes without CPUC approval or review, but the utilities are obligated to use their best efforts to inform the CPUC of any settlement or other resolution of these disputes to the extent this is possible without compromising any aspect of the resolution. SCE and SDG&E have also agreed to allow the CPUC to review the documentation of any final resolution of the NEIL and MHI disputes and the litigation costs incurred in pursuing claims against NEIL and MHI to ensure they are not exorbitant in relation to the recovery obtained. There is no assurance that there will be any recovery from MHI or, if there is a recovery, that it will equal or exceed the litigation costs incurred to pursue the recovery. Long Beach Service Interruptions In July 2015, SCE's customers who are served via the network portion of SCE's electric system in Long Beach, California experienced service interruptions due to multiple underground vault fires and underground cable failures. No personal injuries have been reported in connection with these events. SCE instituted an internal investigation and commissioned an external investigation of these events and their causes, which revealed that the main cause of the interruptions was a lack of adequate management oversight of the downtown network system. The investigations also revealed deficiencies in maintaining the knowledge base on the configuration and operation of the system, and a lack of sophisticated controls needed to more efficiently and effectively prevent and respond to the cascading events that occurred. These events and their causes are also being investigated by the CPUC's SED. SCE is unable to estimate a possible loss or range of loss associated with any penalties that may be imposed by the CPUC related to this matter. Subject to applicable deductibles, SCE is generally insured against customer claims arising from these service interruptions. Environmental Remediation SCE records its environmental remediation liabilities when site assessments and/or remedial actions are probable and a range of reasonably likely cleanup costs can be estimated. SCE reviews its sites and measures the liability quarterly, by assessing a range of reasonably likely costs for each identified site using currently available information, including existing technology, presently enacted laws and regulations, experience gained at similar sites, and the probable level of involvement and financial condition of other potentially responsible parties. These estimates include costs for site investigations, remediation, operation and maintenance, monitoring and site closure. Unless there is a single probable amount, SCE records the lower end of this reasonably likely range of costs (reflected in "Other long-term liabilities") at undiscounted amounts as timing of cash flows is uncertain. At December 31, 2015, SCE's recorded estimated minimum liability to remediate its 19 identified material sites (sites in which the upper end of the range of the costs is at least $1 million) was $131 million, including $80 million related to San Onofre. In addition to these sites, SCE also has 39 immaterial sites for which the total minimum recorded liability was $3 million. Of the $134 million total environmental remediation liability for SCE, $129 million has been recorded as a regulatory asset. SCE expects to recover $47 million through an incentive mechanism that allows SCE to recover 90% of its environmental remediation costs at certain sites (SCE may request to include additional sites) and $82 million through a mechanism that allows SCE to recover 100% of the costs incurred at certain sites through customer rates. SCE's identified sites include several sites for which there is a lack of currently available information, including the nature and magnitude of contamination, and the extent, if any, that SCE may be held responsible for contributing to any costs incurred for remediating these sites. Thus, no reasonable estimate of cleanup costs can be made for these sites. The ultimate costs to clean up SCE's identified sites may vary from its recorded liability due to numerous uncertainties inherent in the estimation process, such as: the extent and nature of contamination; the scarcity of reliable data for identified sites; the varying costs of alternative cleanup methods; developments resulting from investigatory studies; the possibility of identifying additional sites; and the time periods over which site remediation is expected to occur. SCE believes that, due to these uncertainties, it is reasonably possible that cleanup costs at the identified material sites and immaterial sites could exceed its recorded liability by up to $164 million and $8 million, respectively. The upper limit of this range of costs was estimated using assumptions least favorable to SCE among a range of reasonably possible outcomes. SCE expects to clean up and mitigate its identified sites over a period of up to 30 years. Remediation costs for each of the next five years are expected to range from $7 million to $26 million. Costs incurred for years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013 were $5 million, $4 million and $8 million, respectively. Based upon the CPUC's regulatory treatment of environmental remediation costs incurred at SCE, SCE believes that costs ultimately recorded will not materially affect its results of operations, financial position or cash flows. There can be no assurance, however, that future developments, including additional information about existing sites or the identification of new sites, will not require material revisions to estimates. Nuclear Insurance Federal law limits public offsite liability claims for bodily injury and property damage from a nuclear incident to the amount of available financial protection, which is currently approximately $13.5 billion. SCE and other owners of San Onofre and Palo Verde have purchased the maximum private primary insurance available ($375 million) through a Facility Form issued by American Nuclear Insurers ("ANI"). The balance is covered by a loss sharing program among nuclear reactor licensees. If a nuclear incident at any licensed reactor in the United States results in claims and/or costs which exceed the primary insurance at that plant site, all nuclear reactor licensees could be required to contribute their share of the liability in the form of a deferred premium. The ANI Facility Form coverage includes broad liability protection for bodily injury or offsite property damage caused by nuclear material at San Onofre, or while in transit to or from San Onofre. The Facility Form, however, includes several exclusions. First, it excludes onsite property damage to the nuclear facility itself and onsite cleanup costs, but as discussed below SCE maintains separate NEIL property damage coverage for such events. Second, tort claims of onsite workers are excluded, but SCE also maintains an ANI Master Worker Form policy that provides coverage for non-licensee workers. This program provides a shared industry aggregate limit of $375 million. Industry losses covered by this program could reduce limits available to SCE. Third, offsite environmental costs arising out of government orders or directives, including those issued under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, also known as CERCLA, are excluded, with minor exceptions from clearly identifiable accidents. Based on its ownership interests, SCE could be required to pay a maximum of approximately $255 million per nuclear incident. However, it would have to pay no more than approximately $38 million per incident in any one year. If the public liability limit above is insufficient, federal law contemplates that additional funds may be appropriated by Congress. This could include an additional assessment on all licensed reactor operators as a measure for raising further federal revenue. NEIL, a mutual insurance company owned by entities with nuclear facilities, issues nuclear property damage and accidental outage insurance policies. The amount of nuclear property insurance purchased for San Onofre and Palo Verde exceeds the minimum federal requirement of $1.06 billion. These policies include coverage for decontamination liability. Property damage insurance also covers damages caused by acts of terrorism up to specified limits. Additional outage insurance covers part of replacement power expenses during an accident-related nuclear unit outage. The accidental outage insurance at San Onofre has been canceled as a result of the permanent retirement, but that insurance continues to be in effect at Palo Verde. If losses at any nuclear facility covered by the arrangement were to exceed the accumulated funds for these insurance programs, SCE could be assessed retrospective premium adjustments of up to approximately $45 million per year. Insurance premiums are charged to operating expense. Wildfire Insurance Severe wildfires in California have given rise to large damage claims against California utilities for fire-related losses alleged to be the result of the failure of electric and other utility equipment. Invoking a California Court of Appeal decision, plaintiffs pursuing these claims have relied on the doctrine of inverse condemnation, which can impose strict liability (including liability for a claimant's attorneys' fees) for property damage. Prolonged drought conditions in California have also increased the risk of severe wildfire events. On June 1, 2015, Edison International renewed its liability insurance coverage, which included coverage for SCE's wildfire liabilities up to a $610 million limit (with a self-insured retention of $10 million per wildfire occurrence). Various coverage limitations within the policies that make up this insurance coverage could result in additional self-insured costs in the event of multiple wildfire occurrences during the policy period (June 1, 2015 to May 31, 2016). SCE also has additional coverage for certain wildfire liabilities of $390 million, which applies when total covered wildfire claims exceed $610 million, through June 14, 2016. SCE may experience coverage reductions and/or increased insurance costs in future years. No assurance can be given that future losses will not exceed the limits of SCE's insurance coverage. Spent Nuclear Fuel Under federal law, the Department of Energy ("DOE") is responsible for the selection and construction of a facility for the permanent disposal of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. The DOE has not met its contractual obligation to accept of spent nuclear fuel. Extended delays by the DOE have led to the construction of costly alternatives and associated siting and environmental issues. Currently, both San Onofre and Palo Verde have interim storage for spent nuclear fuel on site sufficient for their current license period. In June 2010, the United States Court of Federal Claims issued a decision granting SCE and the San Onofre co-owners damages of approximately $142 million (SCE share $112 million) to recover costs incurred through December 31, 2005 for the DOE's failure to meet its obligation to begin accepting spent nuclear fuel from San Onofre. SCE received payment from the federal government in the amount of the damage award. SCE, as operating agent, filed a lawsuit on behalf of the San Onofre owners against the DOE in the Court of Federal Claims seeking damages of approximately $182 million for the DOE's failure to meet its obligation to begin accepting spent nuclear fuel for the period from January 1, 2006 to December 31, 2013. Additional legal action would be necessary to recover damages incurred after December 31, 2013. All damages recovered by SCE are subject to CPUC review as to how these amounts would be distributed among customers, shareholders, or to offset fuel decommissioning or storage costs.

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