ALLENTOWN, Pa., May 16, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- PPL Corporation
(NYSE: PPL) is focused on delivering best-in-sector operational
performance, investing responsibly in a sustainable energy future,
maintaining a strong financial foundation, and engaging and
developing its people, PPL Chairman, President and Chief Executive
Officer William H. Spence announced
today at PPL's annual meeting in Allentown, Pa.
In his address to shareowners, Spence highlighted the company's
progress in pursuit of this strategy in 2017, discussed the
company's stock price performance, reaffirmed PPL's commitment to
sustainable growth, and praised the company's 12,000 employees for
their dedication to customers, shareowners and their local
communities.
"By many measures, your company excelled in 2017," Spence said.
"We delivered power safely and reliably to more than 10 million
customers in the U.S. and the U.K. We achieved the high end of our
earnings forecast range and increased our dividend by 4 percent. We
invested about $3.5 billion in
infrastructure to modernize the grid and advance a cleaner energy
future. And we remained focused on continuous improvement and value
for our customers."
In Pennsylvania, PPL Electric
Utilities recorded its best year ever for safety and reliability,
Spence said. At the same time, Louisville Gas and Electric Company
and Kentucky Utilities Company produced their best year in more
than a decade for reliability — cutting the frequency of outages by
more than a third since 2010.
Across the regions they serve, PPL's businesses continued to
lead the way in customer satisfaction. PPL Electric Utilities and
Kentucky Utilities ranked highest in residential customer
satisfaction among similarly sized utilities in their respective
regions, and PPL's four U.K. utilities again ranked as the
country's top four distribution network operators in customer
satisfaction.
While PPL demonstrated strong operational performance, Spence
said political and regulatory uncertainty in the U.K. weighed on
the price of PPL shares. Uncertainty over the potential negative
impacts of tax reform also affected the utility sector in 2017.
However, Spence said the company remains confident that its
Western Power Distribution business in the U.K. remains
well-positioned for success as the top-performing network operator
group in the country. In addition, he pointed to a recent decision
by U.K. regulator Ofgem as a signal of support for the country's
regulatory framework. In that decision, Ofgem announced on
April 30 that it would forgo a
mid-period review of network operator revenues and output
requirements under the country's current eight-year price control
period, which extends until March of 2023.
"As U.K. uncertainty fades, we believe PPL's stock price will
better reflect our proven track record of execution, our
high-performing utilities and our strong organic growth story,"
Spence said. "Looking forward, we are well-positioned to deliver
competitive earnings growth and dividends."
Wednesday's meeting was held at PPL Center in Allentown. During the meeting, PPL shareowners
elected 10 directors to one-year terms, approved 2017 compensation
for executive officers named in the company's proxy statement, and
ratified the appointment of Deloitte & Touche LLP as the
company's independent registered public accounting firm for 2018.
Visit the Board of Directors page at www.pplweb.com for background
on the directors elected Wednesday.
Headquartered in Allentown,
Pa., PPL Corporation (NYSE: PPL) is one of the largest
companies in the U.S. utility sector. PPL's seven high-performing,
award-winning utilities serve 10 million customers in the U.S. and
United Kingdom. With more than
12,000 employees, the company is dedicated to providing exceptional
customer service and reliability and delivering superior value for
shareowners. To learn more, visit www.pplweb.com.
Statements contained in this news release, including
statements with respect to future earnings, cash flows, dividends,
financing, regulation and corporate strategy, are "forward-looking
statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws.
Although PPL Corporation believes that the expectations and
assumptions reflected in these forward-looking statements are
reasonable, these statements are subject to a number of risks and
uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially from the
results discussed in the statements. The following are among the
important factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially from the forward-looking statements: market demand for
energy in our service territories; weather conditions affecting
customer energy usage and operating costs; the effect of any
business or industry restructuring; the profitability and liquidity
of PPL Corporation and its subsidiaries; new accounting
requirements or new interpretations or applications of existing
requirements; operating performance of our facilities; the length
of scheduled and unscheduled outages at our generating plants;
environmental conditions and requirements and the related costs of
compliance; system conditions and operating costs; development of
new projects, markets and technologies; performance of new
ventures; asset or business acquisitions and dispositions; any
impact of severe weather on our business; receipt of necessary
government permits, approvals, rate relief and regulatory cost
recovery; capital market conditions and decisions regarding capital
structure; the impact of state, federal or foreign investigations
applicable to PPL Corporation and its subsidiaries; the outcome of
litigation against PPL Corporation and its subsidiaries; stock
price performance; the market prices of equity securities and the
impact on pension income and resultant cash funding requirements
for defined benefit pension plans; the securities and credit
ratings of PPL Corporation and its subsidiaries; political,
regulatory or economic conditions in states, regions or countries
where PPL Corporation or its subsidiaries conduct business,
including any potential effects of threatened or actual
cyberattack, terrorism or war or other hostilities; British pound
sterling to U.S. dollar exchange rates; new state, federal or
foreign legislation, including new tax legislation; and the
commitments and liabilities of PPL Corporation and its
subsidiaries. Any such forward-looking statements should be
considered in light of such important factors and in conjunction
with PPL Corporation's Form 10-K and other reports on file with the
Securities and Exchange Commission.
Contacts:
|
For news media: Ryan
Hill, 610-774-5997
|
|
For financial
analysts: Andy Ludwig, 610-774-3389
|
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SOURCE PPL Corporation