Apr 8, 2026 | Value
Earlier this month, we submitted a joint petition for non-unanimous settlement to the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) requesting approval for an increase in base distribution rates. The proposed settlement reflects months of public review and compromise, ensuring customers receive safe, reliable electric service while maintaining strong protections for affordability.
What does this mean for you?
We know any increase to your electric bill matters. That’s why we’re committed to operating efficiently and supporting you with a variety of resources. In fact, this is our first request to change distribution rates since 2016 — while managing our expenses nearly 25% below the rate of inflation. The result: we held the line on customer costs in a way that very few utilities in this country can point to.
If approved, this settlement includes investments in a stronger system, enhanced assistance for vulnerable customers, expanded payment flexibility and a two-year pause on additional base rate increases.
See how these smart investments are set to boost your service and make your power more reliable:
- Building a stronger electric system: We’re planning targeted investments — stronger poles, upgraded wires, smart grid technology — designed to reduce outages and restore power faster in the future as severe weather intensifies. These improvements help avoid higher costs over time by reducing damage and disruptions.
- Expanding assistance for customers who need it most: We’re expanding support for vulnerable customers by increasing hardship fund bill credits, improving access to assistance programs, eliminating reconnection fees, streamlining the return of security deposits and boosting the annual low-income weatherization budget.
- Supporting responsible large load growth: Large‑load customers, such as data centers, place unique demands on the system. A new large-load rate class ensures our large users make long-term financial and usage commitments to protect other customers from additional infrastructure costs, while also providing $11 million in annual support for low‑income residential customers.
- Adding small business protections: We plan to mitigate cost impacts of net-metered distributed generation and introduces new, flexible payment options for small businesses.
Together, these measures are intended to balance necessary system improvements with protections that help customers manage costs.
Our commitment to accountability
We know you work hard for your money and affordability and reliability remain core priorities for us. The PUC closely reviews and monitors how utilities invest customer dollars, and this settlement includes additional reporting and establishes service expectations to ensure you see real improvements and benefits.
We are committed to operating efficiently, managing costs responsibly and being transparent about the outcomes customers can expect from these investments.
For more information and to review the entire settlement, visit pplelectric.com/RateInfo.
Mar 26, 2026 | Reliability
On Friday, March 20, residents and commuters in downtown Dickson City witnessed an impressive sight: a 220-ton transformer making its way through Main Street on its journey to our Lackawanna substation.
This delivery was the first of seven scheduled transformer transports taking place between March and June as part of our ongoing reliability upgrades throughout our 29-county service territory. These major equipment upgrades are essential to strengthening the grid and improving long-term reliability.
In total, these deliveries will directly help improve reliability for 155,000 customers in our territory. The delivery through Dickson City alone will benefit over 36,000 customers.
Big accommodations for big deliveries
The sheer size of the equipment – roughly 25 feet long and 12 feet high – required a highly coordinated transport effort. Crews moved slowly through the downtown area on Friday afternoon, halting intersections and lifting utility lines where necessary to allow the oversized load to move safely to its destination.
While the move did cause some brief traffic delays, the operation went smoothly thanks to cooperation between PPL Electric, contractors, local officials and the community.
What does a transformer do?
Transformers are an important part of a substation. As electricity travels, it will head to substations, where transformers will increase or decrease voltage – think “transforming” – so that it can safely travel to its next destination.
The transformer heading to our Lackawanna substation will replace an older transformer to improve efficiency and reduce maintenance.
Bigger. Newer. Better.
With six additional deliveries scheduled in the coming months, customers will continue to see our investments in action. And if you see one of these transformers on the move (they’re hard to miss!), know that they’re helping move safer, more reliable power into your homes and businesses.
Mar 18, 2026 | Reliability
As the weather warms up and many of us start dreaming about new flowers, trees and shrubs, it’s a great time to think about how your landscaping choices can support both a beautiful yard and reliable electric service. Trees and shrubs do so much good for our environment — they clean the air, offer shade, support wildlife and add natural beauty to our homes. But when planted too close to power lines, they can also cause avoidable outages, especially during storms.
That’s why choosing the right tree or plant for the right place is so important. The trees and shrubs you plant today will continue to grow for decades and giving them the proper space now helps ensure they won’t interfere with power lines or create safety concerns in the future. By selecting the right species and planting them in the right spots, you can help prevent outages, protect your home and keep your landscaping healthy as it matures.
To make planning easier, we offer a list of trees and shrubs that can be safely planted near power lines. It includes options of all sizes — from beautiful flowering trees like Dogwoods and Eastern Redbuds, to larger shrubs such as Black Elderberry and American Witch-Hazel, to smaller favorites like Mountain Laurel, Black Huckleberry and even common berry bushes. You can explore the full list and get more tips at pplelectric.com/KnowBeforeYouGrow.
When it comes to tall-growing trees, be sure to give them plenty of room to reach their mature height. Anything that will grow taller than 25 feet should be planted at least 50 feet away from overhead power lines to prevent issues down the road. It’s also helpful to keep ground-mounted transformers clear of any new vegetation. Doing so ensures our crews can work safely and quickly whenever maintenance or repairs are needed.
Spring planting often means digging too, so don’t forget one of the most important steps: calling 811 at least three business days before you start. This free service marks underground utilities, including buried power lines, so you or your landscapers can work safely and avoid damaging critical infrastructure.
If you’re maintaining existing trees on your property, remember that pruning near power lines should always be left to trained professionals. Working close to electric lines is extremely dangerous and could result in serious injury or death. For work near the service wire that runs from our pole to your home, we can temporarily de-energize the line and lower it so you or your contractor can safely handle the job. Just give us a call at 1-800-342-5775 at least five business days before the work begins.
And if you see our crews trimming trees or working on equipment in your neighborhood, please keep a safe distance. A little space helps keep both you and our employees safe while they complete important reliability work.
If you’re looking for extra guidance or inspiration as you plan your spring projects, the Arbor Day Foundation offers helpful tools and resources for choosing the right tree or shrub and selecting the best location for planting. It’s a great place to learn more, visit the Arbor Day Foundation’s website.
A little planning goes a long way — for your safety, your yard and the reliability of the electric service we provide to you and your neighbors. Together, we can ensure that the planting we do today grows and blooms well into the future.
Feb 11, 2026 | Reliability
Winter storms can bring heavy snow, ice and strong winds. Conditions that put stress on power lines and equipment. That’s why we don’t wait for trouble to strike. Our teams work throughout the year to inspect, maintain and upgrade the grid. From replacing aging equipment to installing smart technology that helps us detect and respond to outages faster, these steps make a big difference when storms hit.
In 2025, we completed more than 75 reliability projects across our service area, strengthening the grid and reducing the risk of outages during severe weather. Through this work, upgrades to poles, wires and equipment are benefiting reliability directly. New poles and wires are designed to withstand 100 mile-per-hour winds, newly installed devices and reconfigured segments of line improve resiliency and, in some cases, relocated poles and wires are moved out of inaccessible areas making any restoration safer and quicker for our crews and customers.
And when winter weather hits, what’s the biggest cause of outages? Trees and branches. More specifically when they come into contact with power lines. To help prevent tree-related outages, we have a robust vegetation management program that helps to keep lines clear and safe.
Our crews trim trees and remove hazardous branches along thousands of miles of power lines every year. This proactive work helps prevent outages before they happen and keeps your power flowing — even when winter weather is at its worst. In fact, in 2026, we’re planning to clear vegetation along more than 4,750 miles of lines, to help reduce outages and improve reliability for thousands of customers in the process.
We’ve also continued to invest in Smart Grid technology that helps us respond faster when outages occur. The system can reroute power in real time, isolate problems and restore service to many customers in minutes without having to wait for a crew. It’s just one way we’re using innovation to keep you connected. This past August, our Smart Grid surpassed 3 million outages avoided, which equates to more than 650 million minutes of powering moments that matter for customers.
Thanks to these combined efforts, customers experienced nearly 25% fewer outages in 2025 compared to 2024. That’s progress. And it reflects how we’re continuously working as your partner in power, to keep your service strong and dependable every day, no matter what the weather throws at us.
Behind the scenes, our storm response teams monitor weather patterns, stage equipment and prepare crews to respond quickly when severe weather is on the way. We’re ready 24/7 because we know how much you depend on reliable electricity. For safety, warmth and peace of mind.
To learn more about what we’re doing every day to keep your service reliable, visit pplelectric.com/reliability.
Feb 18, 2025 | Reliability
For PPL Electric Utilities Engineers Miguel Mendoza, Chris Jarrah, Amr El Hakim and their teams, future-proofing the electric grid goes well beyond new technology or software. It means combining innovative thinking, a problem-solving outlook and always keeping the real-world impact in mind, which for them means that when the switch is flipped, the power goes on.
PPL Electric engineers are constantly pushing the boundaries of innovation to modernize the grid, enhance reliability and ensure a more secure and efficient electric system for our customers. As we celebrate National Engineers Week, we’re spotlighting a groundbreaking project that demonstrates the critical role engineers play in shaping the future of energy: Intelligent Electronic Device (IED) Management.
IEDs are important components within substations that enable automation, real-time monitoring and remote operations that keep our electric grid running smoothly. However, as technology evolves, it’s critical to have an efficient and scalable system to remotely manage, configure and update these devices. That’s where IED Management comes in.
This innovative project — being worked on by Mendoza, Jarrah, El Hakim and their teams — focuses on replacing outdated substation technology with a next-generation IED Management solution. The goal? To enhance system security, improve operational efficiency and future-proof our grid infrastructure. The impact of this project extends beyond just technology upgrades. It also directly benefits our customers by improving reliability, reducing outages and lowering operational costs. With real-time remote troubleshooting and automated updates, PPL Electric can respond to issues faster and with fewer onsite visits. Additionally, these updates make our grid more resilient, ensuring a safer and more secure electric system.
“This project revolutionizes the way we manage and secure our substations,” Jarrah said. “By automating critical tasks, we’re enhancing safety and boosting efficiency. It’s a significant step toward a more modern, resilient electric grid as we continue to build the utility of the future.”
For engineers like Miguel, this project represents the perfect blend of innovation, problem-solving and real-world impact. IED Management is more than just upgrading technology — it’s about securing the future of our electric grid and making a tangible difference for the communities we serve.
“This project is exciting because it combines innovation with practical engineering solutions to modernize the grid,” Mendoza said. “It’s fulfilling to contribute to something that directly enhances reliability and efficiency for our customers.”
At PPL Electric, we know that the future of energy depends on the brilliant minds of our engineers. Projects like IED Management showcase how engineering connects cutting-edge technology with real-world applications, solving challenges in security, compliance and operational efficiency. For those considering a career in engineering, this work is an example of how you can be at the forefront of powering the future. We’re proud to celebrate our engineers, whose dedication, expertise and innovation drive our mission forward every day.
Do you want to engineer the utility of the future? PPL Electric offers a variety of exciting careers in engineering. Explore current opportunities and join an exceptionally brilliant team by visiting pplweb.com/careers.
