FILE PHOTO: A PG&E truck carrying an American Flag drives past PG&E repair trucks in Paradise, California, U.S. November 21, 2018. REUTERS/Elijah Nouvelage

(Reuters) - A lawyer for the committee representing wildfire victims in the bankruptcy of PG&E Corp PCG.N said at a hearing on Monday that the committee sees $13.5 billion as the cost to the power provider for paying claims of the victims.

Cecily Dumas of BakerHostetler was comparing that expectation with the maximum of $8.4 billion PG&E has proposed for paying victims of the wildfires in 2017 and 2018 in Northern California that forced it to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January.

At the time, PG&E said it expected wildfire-related liabilities topping $30 billion.

The utility has already struck settlements worth a combined $12 billion to resolve claims of a group of public entities hit hard by the blazes and insurers who had made payments for wildfire-related claims.