Clock Is Ticking on PGW Sale

Mayor Nutter wants action. City Council won’t be rushed.

Whether or not the mayor is an irresistable force, the council certainly is proving to be an immovable object. Faced with a July 15th deadline for the sale of Philadelphia Gas Works — after which, proposed purchaser UIL Holdings can simply walk away — the Council has responded by … not really responding. (UIL has not said if it will walk away.) Council President Darrell Clark says a full review is more important than externally imposed deadlines.

“We said all along we will review the documents, which we are,” Clarke told Newsworks on Monday. “We are doing our due diligence as it relates to a very significant transaction, and, at the appropriate time, we will take whatever action is necessary.”

The mayor is getting antsy.

“The administration is hopeful the PGW bills will be introduced in City Council this week and hearings can be held as soon as possible, and that Council will see the benefit of this sale,” Mark McDonald, Nutter’s spokesman, told the Inquirer on Monday.

Council won’t act, though, until it hears from its own consultant, Concentric Energy Advisors. The firm is expected to brief Council on Tuesday. (Newsworks/Inquirer)