PPL Corp.’s Rhode Island Energy subsidiary has won regulator approval to install advanced digital meters, starting in 2024.
The Rhode Island Public Utility Commission approved capital spending of as much as $153 million for the meters, according to a PPL statement.
The advanced meters will make the Ocean State’s electricity grid more reliable, and better able to meet the state’s ambitious climate goals. Rhode Island’s 2021 Act on Climate sets a goal of net-zero greenhouse-gas emissions — linked to climate change — by 2050.
“Advanced metering infrastructure, which we’ve deployed in Pennsylvania and are deploying in Kentucky, is a key step in modernizing our energy networks and delivers significant benefits,” PPL Chief Executive Officer and President Vincent Sorgi said in a company statement.
The technology will provide detailed usage information to customers, help PPL find outage locations quickly and allow for “dynamic pricing options” for customers.
After starting next year, the installation will take about three years. That is part of PPL’s plan to invest more than $12 billion through 2026 to improve the reliabilty of its grid, and replace old coal-fired plants with a cheaper, cleaner energy mix.
Allentown-based PPL serves more than 3.5 million customers.
Shares in the company are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol PPL. The closing price Tuesday was $22.98, giving the company are market capitalization (share price times number of shares outstanding) of $16.9 billion.
In the last 52 weeks, the shares have traded as high as $31.74 and as low as $22.20.