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Commitments and Guarantees
 12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2020
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
Commitments and Guarantees [Text Block] COMMITMENTS AND GUARANTEES
Purchase Commitments

As of December 31, 2020, PGE’s estimated future minimum payments pursuant to purchase obligations for the following five years and thereafter are as follows (in millions):
 Payments Due
 20212022202320242025ThereafterTotal
Capital and other purchase commitments$237 $33 $20 $1 $1 $55 $347 
Purchased power and fuel:
Electricity purchases250 257 284 278 249 2,886 4,204 
Capacity contracts9 9 9 9 9 — 45 
Public utility districts21 19 18 17 17 39 131 
Natural gas57 42 37 43 43 578 800 
Coal and transportation27 27 27 27 27 — 135 
Total$601 $387 $395 $375 $346 $3,558 $5,662 

Capital and other purchase commitments—Certain commitments have been made for 2021 and beyond that include those related to hydro licenses, upgrades to generation, distribution, and transmission facilities, information systems, and system maintenance work. Termination of these agreements could result in cancellation charges.

Electricity purchases and Capacity contracts—PGE has power purchase agreements with counterparties, which expire at varying dates through 2052, and power capacity contracts through 2028.

Public utility districts—PGE has long-term power purchase agreements with certain public utility districts (PUDs) in the state of Washington:
•Grant County PUD for the Priest Rapids and Wanapum Hydroelectric Projects, and
•Douglas County PUD for the Wells Hydroelectric Project.

Under the Grant County agreements, the Company is required to pay its proportionate share of the operating and debt service costs of the hydroelectric projects whether they are operable or not. Under the Douglas County agreement, the Company is required to make monthly payments for capacity that will not vary with annual project generation provided to PGE. The Company has estimated the capacity payments, which are subject to annual adjustments based on Douglas County’s loads, and included the estimated amounts in the table above. The future minimum payments for the PUDs in the preceding table reflect the principal and capacity payments only and do not include interest, operation, or maintenance expenses.
Selected information regarding these projects is summarized as follows (dollars in millions):
 
 Capacity Charges and Revenue Bonds as of December 31, 2020PGE’s Average Share as of December 31, 2020Contract
Expiration		Total PGE Contract Costs
OutputCapacity202020192018
   (in MW)    
Priest Rapids and Wanapum$1,880 8.6 %163 2052$25 $21 $17 
Wells572 16.6 94 202823 16 11 

The agreements for Priest Rapids, Wanapum, and Wells provide that, should any other purchaser of output default on payments as a result of bankruptcy or insolvency, PGE would be allocated a pro-rata share of the output and operating and debt service costs of the defaulting purchaser. For Wells, PGE would be responsible for a pro-rata portion of the defaulting purchaser’s share with no limitation, regardless of the reason for any default. For Priest Rapids and Wanapum, PGE would be allocated up to a cumulative maximum that would not adversely affect the tax-exempt status of any of the public utility district’s outstanding debt for the portion of the project that benefits tax-exempt purchasers.

Natural gas—PGE has contracts for the purchase and transportation of natural gas from domestic and Canadian sources for its natural gas-fired generating facilities.

Coal and transportation—PGE had coal and related rail transportation agreements with take-or-pay provisions related to the Boardman coal-fired generation plant (Boardman) that expired in December 2020 in conjunction with the cessation of coal fired generation at Boardman. The Company has a coal agreement with take-or-pay provisions related to Colstrip Units 3 and 4 coal-fired generation plant (Colstrip) that expires in December 2025.

Guarantees

PGE enters into financial agreements, and purchase and sale agreements involving physical delivery of, both power and natural gas that include indemnification provisions relating to certain claims or liabilities that may arise relating to the transactions contemplated by these agreements. Generally, a maximum obligation is not explicitly stated in the indemnification provisions and, therefore, the overall maximum amount of the obligation under such indemnifications cannot be reasonably estimated. PGE periodically evaluates the likelihood of incurring costs under such indemnities based on the Company’s historical experience and the evaluation of the specific indemnities. As of December 31, 2020, management believes the likelihood is remote that PGE would be required to perform under such indemnification provisions or otherwise incur any significant losses with respect to such indemnities. The Company has not recorded any liability on the consolidated balance sheets with respect to these indemnities.