ALLENTOWN, Pa., Nov. 19, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- The PPL Electric
Utilities delivery rate increase approved Thursday (11/19) by the
Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission paves the way for customers
to have even more reliable electric service.
Average customer electric bills are expected to be lower – even
after the increase – because of a recent reduction in the price to
compare.
"We are in the midst of monumental improvements in the quality
of service for our customers," said Greg
Dudkin, PPL Electric Utilities president. "We have plans to
reduce the number and duration of power outages even further,
providing our customers with reliability that compares to the best
electric companies in the nation."
When the delivery charge increase approved by the PUC takes
effect, a residential customer using 1,000 kilowatt-hours per month
who does not shop for electricity supply would have an electric
bill of about $138 per month – more
than $9 lower than the current
average bill of about $147.
Customers who shop for their energy supply can save even
more.
PPL Electric Utilities plans to spend about $5 billion during the next five years to
renew, strengthen and modernize its electricity delivery
network.
The company will continue to invest in smart grid technology,
new power lines and substations, more effective tree trimming and
stronger poles and wires – all aimed at preventing outages from
storms and other causes. These investments are paying off for
customers:
- Customers now have 20 percent fewer outages than they did in
2007.
- Reliability is expected to improve by at least another 20
percent in the next five years because of additional
investments.
- Tree-related power outages are down 18 percent compared to the
average of the previous 10 years. Trees are the biggest cause of
power outages in storms.
- In the first half of 2015, nearly 200,000 power outages were
prevented because of work PPL is doing to improve its system.
"Our 2,300 employees are finding new ways every day to improve
service to customers," Dudkin said. "And at the same time, we are
focused on operating more efficiently to make sure electric service
from PPL remains a good value for our customers."
The delivery charge increase will take effect on Jan. 1,
2016.
PPL Electric Utilities provides electric delivery service to
more than 1.4 million homes and businesses
in Pennsylvania and ranks among the best utility
companies in the country for customer service and reliability. With
2,300 employees, PPL Electric Utilities is a major employer in the
communities it serves. It is a subsidiary of PPL Corporation (NYSE:
PPL). For more information,
visit www.pplelectric.com.
Note to Editors: Visit our media website at www.pplnewsroom.com
for additional news and background about PPL Corporation.
Contact:
|
Paul Wirth,
610-774-5997
|
|
PPL Electric
Utilities
|
To view the original version on PR Newswire,
visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/new-ppl-electric-utilities-rates-will-fund-more-work-to-cut-outages-300181890.html
SOURCE PPL Electric Utilities