It no doubt comes as a surprise to many – activists, reporters and policymakers, as well as consumers – to hear that PPL is leaving the business of selling electricity, and ceding that enterprise to a new breed of competitive suppliers.

But that’s essentially what occurs on Jan. 1, when the era of electric competition dawns in the PPL service territory.  The rate caps come off, the competitive suppliers come in, and PPL becomes primarily a distributor of electricity and fixer of downed power lines, with the almost reluctant responsibility to be the provider of last resort for customers who don’t sign on with one of the new (and lower-priced) suppliers.

Although more than 10 years in the making, this dramatic paradigm shift clearly has many folks confused.  Yes, electric prices are going up, significantly, after being frozen at artificially low levels for a dozen or so years.  It was inevitable, with either a competitive or regulated market.

Electricity prices going up?  Just as sure and as quickly as a duck will feast on a June bug, everyone wants to bang the utility for that.  Gouging us again, cry consumers.  Corporate greed-heads, grouse policymakers.  Pull the plug on PPL’s rate hike, assert activists.  All the while, many in the news media simply chronicle the banging without bothering to ferret out what’s really happening.  One media outlet recently characterized the entrance of a new supplier into the market as “yet another blow to PPL.”  No, no, no.

Which brings us to today’s confab on energy and rate caps sponsored by Penn Future, at which PPL President David DeCampli urged customers to “please shop.”  He noted that competitive suppliers would enable customers to avoid the full impact of PPL’s 30 percent increase in the default rate (on which the utility receives little or no profit), and he assured consumers that PPL will not think them disloyal.

Okay, one more time:  As of Jan. 1, PPL will be out of the business of selling electricity, except to consumers who have failed to look after their own best interest and sign up with a supplier that is cheaper and greener, just as reliable, and much more willing to please them than PPL would be.

Now, one last thought for our friends who love the good old days and hate change.  Your electricity will still be delivered to your door by good, ole PPL.  And they will charge you a delivery fee for bringing it to your doorstep.  Think of it like the milkman who used to come to your door.  He brought you the milk.  But a cow made it.  Now, same with electricity.