Property, Plant and Equipment

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2015

Property, Plant and Equipment [Abstract]

Property, Plant and Equipment

Property, Plant and Equipment

SCE's property, plant and equipment included in the consolidated balance sheets is composed of the following:

	December 31,
(in millions)	2015			2014
Transmission	$	11,592		$	10,391
Distribution	20,871			19,255
Generation	3,138			2,986
General plant and other	4,543			4,889
Accumulated depreciation	(8,548		)	(8,132		)
	31,596			29,389
Construction work in progress	3,218			3,339
Nuclear fuel, at amortized cost	131			131
Total utility property, plant and equipment	$	34,945		$	32,859

Capitalized Software Costs

SCE capitalizes costs incurred during the application development stage of internal use software projects to property, plant, and equipment. SCE amortizes capitalized software costs ratably over the expected lives of the software, ranging from 5 to 15 years and commencing upon operational use. At December 31, 2015 and 2014, capitalized software costs included in general plant and other above, were $1.4 billion and $1.7 billion and accumulated amortization was $892 million and $1.0 billion, respectively. Amortization expense for capitalized software was $268 million, $271 million and $251 million in 2015, 2014 and 2013, respectively. At December 31, 2015, amortization expense is estimated to be approximately $237 million annually for 2016 through 2020.

Jointly Owned Utility Projects

SCE owns undivided interests in several generating assets for which each participant provides its own financing. SCE's proportionate share of these assets is reflected in the consolidated balance sheets and included in the above table. SCE's proportionate share of expenses for each project is reflected in the consolidated statements of income. A portion of the investments in Palo Verde generating stations is included in regulatory assets on the consolidated balance sheets. For further information see Note 10.

The following is SCE's investment in each asset as of December 31, 2015:

(in millions)	Plant in Service		Construction Work in Progress		Accumulated Depreciation		Nuclear Fuel (at amortized cost)		Net Book Value		Ownership Interest
Transmission systems:
Eldorado	$	186	$	38	$	20	$	—	$	204	59%
Pacific Intertie	191		11		79		—		123		50%
Generating station:
Palo Verde (nuclear)	1,928		62		1,538		131		583		16%
Total	$	2,305	$	111	$	1,637	$	131	$	910

In addition, SCE has ownership interests in jointly owned power poles with other companies.