Our electric grid consists of thousands of miles of poles and wires that deliver electricity to your homes, as well as the state-of-the-art technologies that manage them. Every year, we invest in systems and activities to keep our grid on the leading edge so we can keep your lights on.

Here are just three examples of the many reliability initiatives underway throughout our 29-county service territory.

Vegetation Management

Fallen tree branches are the number one cause of storm-related power outages. That’s why our crews work hard to identify, trim and remove trees and tree limbs before they cause problems.

Our maintenance program is designed so we can trim the right trees at the right times to prevent outages. We use data to identify the areas that have the highest probability of tree-related damage and act accordingly.

Smart grid investments

Back in the day, when there was an outage on one of our lines, most every customer on that damaged line lost power. 

Now, thanks to an impressive combination of automated sensors and switches, coupled with an advanced software system, our grid can reroute power automatically to limit the number of customers impacted by an outage. 

Plus, the system can shorten outage duration. That means an outage that once could have lasted hours becomes a momentary blip. You might have to reset your digital clocks, but you won’t have to break out your flashlights.

Line monitoring

Every day, we proactively monitor the thousands of miles of lines that deliver electricity to our Pennsylvania customers.

We’re looking for trouble spots, equipment damage and any other issues that could cause you to lose power.

We rely on our dedicated crew to identify and report issues, but for some of our assets we also use unique methods, like camera-equipped drones, to keep an eye out for problems.

Drones capture images of lines and transformers. They do thermal imaging to catch hotspots that can signal future problems. They also improve our vegetation management program by measuring the distance from trees to power lines, allowing us to schedule trimming before it’s too late.

This is just the tip of the iceberg. To stay up to date on our reliability investments, watch future editions of Connect and follow us on social media.

 

Looking out for you: Shop smart and save

Take a look at your brand-new PPL Electric Utilities bill, and you’ll notice there are two types of charges highlighted.

• Your “delivery” charge is what you pay every month for PPL Electric to deliver safe and reliable power to your door. It covers distribution poles and wires, customer service and more.
• In Pennsylvania, you can shop around for the electricity supplier that’s right for you. The supply charge covers the generation of power (that charge goes to your supplier), as well as transmission delivery charges.

One way to keep your bill as low as possible is to make sure you’re always paying a competitive rate for electricity supply.

Follow these steps to shop smart:

1) Check supplier offers: Visit papowerswitch.com to see what suppliers are out there and what they’re charging.

2) Check your current rate: To see what you’re paying for electricity supply, check your PPL Electric bill. If you’re on paperless billing, log into your account at pplelectric.com to view your bill.

3) Choose a supplier: You can choose a supplier, or – if you don’t want to contract with a separate supplier – you can receive default service through PPL Electric. We’ll buy the power for you (at market rate) and pass on the cost without profit to us. The rate you pay for default service is called the “price to compare.” It changes every December 1 and June 1, so check your rates regularly.

If you cancel with an existing supplier and do not choose a new one, you’ll automatically receive default service from PPL Electric.

It’s as simple as that. And shopping smart can save you big. So, don’t leave money on the table. Shop around for the best supply rate today!

For more tips and information, visit pplelectric.com/shopsmart.

Customer service made easy  

Whether you’re calling your cable company, your credit card provider or another business, dealing with customer support can be a hassle. We want to be the exception to that rule.

That’s why we’ve invested in new tools to make your customer experience easier than ever.

• The new pplelectric.com allows you to process everyday transactions with just a few clicks. You can make a payment, get customized payment assistance, take control of your energy use, shop for an electricity supplier, report an outage and more … without having to pick up the phone.
• When a call is necessary, our new-and-improved phone system can get you the service you need fast. The system recognizes your speech, so you can say what you need and get routed directly. No more waiting for a robot to list every transaction under the sun before you can make a selection.
• Your new customer bill – available in the mail and on the website – makes it easier to understand your charges, keep up on your payments and manage your energy use.

We invest in service, so you get more bang for your buck.

 

Save on smart thermostats this Black Friday 

Shop ‘til you drop on the PPL Electric Utilities online energy efficiency marketplace. Don’t miss your chance to get additional special instant discounts on some of the most popular smart thermostats from Nov. 15 through Dec. 1. Smart thermostats are a great way to save energy and money on your electric bill! Visit pplelectric.com/marketplace to start saving.