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| First Person |
Surviving Enron
Peggy Fowler
12/01/2006
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Peggy Fowler is CEO and president of Portland General
Electric.
Standing on the dais last April
at the New York Stock Exchange, waiting to ring the opening bell, it struck me
that the company I work for was far from a typical start-up launching an
IPO.
 | PEGGY FOWLER (front) and the Portland General Electric staff celebrate the utility’s
survival of the Enron debacle and its public offering. |
On April 3, Portland General Electric (PGE) emerged on Wall
Street as one of the only surviving assets of the Enron estate. In contrast to
its former parent company, which lay in ruins, PGE was a healthy, financially
solid utility with an experienced team of managers and employees.
Ringing the bell with me that day were seven of my coworkers,
including a lineman, a meter reader and a customer service agent, who were
elected by their peers to represent the 2,600 PGE employees who had escaped from
the largest bankruptcy in history.
Today, PGE is thriving. We are one of Oregon’s largest publicly traded companies. Our financial ratings are investment grade and our balance
sheet is strong.
I’m often asked how PGE survived this tumultuous time and what
lessons we learned along the way. The story of PGE’s emergence from the Enron
bankruptcy is not about the actions of our former owners. It’s not about
backroom deals. In part, our story is one of government regulation done
right.
Most of all, our success is a credit to my coworkers, who
remained loyal to PGE and focused on serving our customers, even as they watched
their parent company dissolve and much of their 401(k) savings disintegrate.
They believed in PGE and our mission, and knew we operated our business in an
honest, ethical manner. Their focus and determination to keep PGE strong is what
maintained the company’s value and allowed us to overcome the odds.
The brash style of many Enron executives seemed a stark contrast to the highly talented, yet modest, PGE team. |
A Different Culture
Enron bought PGE in July 1997 for $3.1 billion, at a time when
Wall Street was abuzz about deregulation and consolidation in the energy
industry. At first, we were excited about being part of a global energy company
known for its focus, innovation and pioneer spirit. We soon found it was not a
cultural fit. The brash style of many Enron executives seemed a stark contrast
to the highly talented, yet modest, PGE team.
Thankfully, Enron mostly left us alone to run our business. We
focused on serving our customers, while bringing in solid financial returns. But
it quickly became evident that a regulated, asset-based utility with steady
returns did not fit Enron’s profit strategy. Two years after Enron purchased
PGE, it put the company back up for sale. In fact, we were close to being sold
to another utility when Enron declared bankruptcy in 2001.
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