Carbon County residents are paying nearly double for electricity, and the utility that delivers it says the pressure is only building.

Jane George, manager of government affairs and special projects for PPL Electric Utilities, told business leaders Tuesday that customers were paying 7 to 8 cents per kilowatt-hour a year ago and are now paying closer to 13 to 14 cents. She spoke at the 2026 State of the County address, hosted by the Carbon Chamber & Economic Development Corp. at Blue Mountain Resort.

The cause, she said, is not the wires. It is a supply shortage colliding with the fastest demand growth in the industry’s history.

PPL serves about 1.5 million customers in 29 Pennsylvania counties over 50,000 miles of transmission and distribution lines. Its peak load is about 7.5 gigawatts. In five years, George said, that figure is expected to approach 30 gigawatts.

“It took us 100 years to reach 7.5 gigawatts of power, which is a lot, and we’re going to be at 30 in five years,” George said. “Never in the history of this country have utilities seen growth like we’re experiencing today.”

Data centers account for much of it. Projects with signed agreements in PPL’s queue represent 28 gigawatts of load by 2034.

As a regulated utility, PPL is required by the state Public Utility Commission to connect any customer who requests service, George said.

“We can’t build it until we have signed agreements in place. That wouldn’t be fair to our ratepayers if we simply built it on speculation,” George said.

Projects move through a feasibility study, a letter of agreement, a cash commitment and design checkpoints before construction, she said. A single large-load connection creates roughly 150 to 250 jobs.

“Done right, data centers can be good for a community. They create jobs. They create tax incentives,” George said. “But our job at PPL is to connect them and at the same time protect our customers.”

George said PPL is the first utility in the state to create a rate class for the largest users, known as LP-6. It covers customers drawing 50 megawatts or more at a single site, or 75 megawatts combined across sites within 10 miles. Those customers commit to a set load and must pay for at least 80% of it for the first five years, then half after that. They also cover transmission costs and agree to curtail use during shortages. Beginning in 2027, they will put $11 million a year into low-income and customer assistance programs.

On bills, George said customers were paying 7 to 8 cents per kilowatt-hour a year ago and are now paying closer to 13 to 14 cents. About half of a residential bill is supply.

“Your bill is high right now, not because of your electric utility, but because of your supplier,” George said. “There’s not enough supply in the system, and it’s not working. That’s why you’re paying so much.”

Pennsylvania deregulated electricity 30 years ago, separating generation from delivery. PPL and other distribution companies have backed legislation that would let them generate power during periods of high demand.

George said the bill has not gained traction.

“I hated economics in college, but I do remember supply and demand. You put more supply in the system and the price is going to go down,” George said.

There have been 11 energy alerts on the regional grid since 2024, she said, and customers are seeing roughly $25 to $30 more a month.

George also acknowledged long hold times on the utility’s customer service line.

“I’m going to apologize if you call our 800 number and try to talk to our customer service. You’re on the phone for a long time,” George said. “We are working very hard on that so that you don’t have to.”