April 25 (Reuters) - Power company PG&E Corp ( PCG )

beat Wall Street estimates for first-quarter profit and raised

its full-year earnings forecast on Thursday, helped by higher

electricity rates and lower operating and wildfire-related

costs.

Last year, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC)

voted to approve PG&E's ( PCG ) infrastructure plan that would lead

customer bills to rise by nearly 13%.

The Oakland, California-based company's operating

expenses fell 17% to $4.59 billion in the three months of 2024

compared with the same quarter a year earlier, partly due to

lower fuel costs. Lower costs related to the Wildfire Fund

amortization expense also helped the earnings of the company.

In January, the CPUC also approved a $45 million settlement

for the utility's part in the destructive 2021 Dixie wildfire,

which in 2021 resulted in more than 963,000 acres (390,000

hectares) being burned across multiple counties.

PG&E ( PCG ) is the parent company of Pacific Gas and Electric

Company that serves 16 million Californians across a

70,000-square mile (181,300-square kilometer) service area in

Northern and Central California.

At the same time customer payments rose and costs fell, PG&E ( PCG )

eyed power demand growth tied to electric vehicles and data

centers.

The company projects 1% to 3% power load growth per year

in the near term and a roughly 70% load growth over the next two

decades as California uses electrification to reach its

climate-focused energy goals by 2045.

Grid operator the California Independent System Operator

forecasts 120 gigawatts of clean energy to be added to the state

in the next 20 years, nearly twice the current 67 gigawatt

system.

"We're in a position to win on the clean energy

transition," PG&E ( PCG ) CEO Patricia Poppe said on a call announcing

the company's quarterly results.

The company raised its 2024 GAAP earnings forecast range to

$1.15 to $1.20 per share, up from the previous range of $1.10 to

$1.14.

On an adjusted basis, PG&E ( PCG ) reported a profit of 37 cents per

share beating analysts' estimates of 35 cents per share,

according to LSEG.