News Releases

Columbia County, Pa., now has a blueprint for energy savings in its prison and courthouse, thanks to a comprehensive look at those facilities under a PPL Electric Utilities E-power program.

A free energy audit, conducted as part of the E-power CitySmart municipal benchmarking program, resulted in an action plan for lighting, heating and cooling improvements projected to save the county more than $15,000 a year in electricity costs.

Among the efficiency opportunities identified were lighting retrofit projects at the prison and courthouse and condensing unit replacements for the air-conditioning system at the prison.

County commissioners are examining the recommendations to determine what their own action plan might be for implementing the suggested measures.

“Maintaining county government facilities is an expensive business. Taking advantage of this free program is an important first step as we look to see where we can make the biggest energy impact at the most reasonable cost,” said Commissioner Chairman Chris Young. “Partnering with PPL Electric Utilities and its contractor, ClearResult Consulting, was time well-spent.”

The audit found the 43,000-square-foot county prison has the greatest opportunity to save electricity out of all of the county facilities that were examined. Annual energy costs at the prison for both electricity and natural gas total more than $140,000. More than $75,000 of that total goes toward electricity.

“And now with the start of an energy-saving action plan, the county can take advantage of PPL Electric Utilities’ E-power rebates and financial incentives to help offset the cost and reduce the payback period of recommended improvements,” said Teri MacBride, PPL’s regional community relations director. “Teaming our governmental customers with E-power helps them save energy and money, now and in the long term.”

E-power programs offer energy efficiency and conservation tools, information and incentives for all customer groups. In 2010, more than 110,000 rebates were processed and more than $18 million paid to customers. For more information on all the E-power options, visit www.pplelectric.com/e-power.

PPL Electric Utilities, a subsidiary of PPL Corporation (NYSE: PPL), provides electric delivery services to about 1.4 million customers in Pennsylvania and has consistently ranked among the best companies for customer service in the United States. More information is available at www.pplelectric.com.

For further information:
PPL Electric Utilities: Joe Nixon, 610-774-5997, jcnixonjr@pplweb.com
Columbia County: Finance Director David Witchey, 570-389-5600