"Unlike some who have decided to abandon their past in search of new electricity business, at PP&L Resources we believe that nearly eight decades of expertise will provide our customers with significant benefits in the changing energy marketplace," said William F. Hecht, the company's chairman, president and chief executive officer.

"The decision to retain the PP&L identity is more than symbolic — it represents a rededication to the quality service and low prices that our customers in central and eastern Pennsylvania have known for most of this century," said Hecht. "With the opening up of the energy market to more competition, those outside our traditional service area will have the opportunity to experience the benefits of being a PP&L customer."

Hecht said the new sunburst logo emphasizes the company's customer-friendly approach as well as its commitment to creating a bright future for its customers and other constituencies.

In making the announcement today, Hecht said Pennsylvania Power & Light Co. has changed its official name to PP&L, Inc.

"For decades, our customers have simply called us PP&L. Our new naming system is a recognition of that fact and of our desire to continue that relationship with our long-time customers. We also believe that PP&L will work well in new markets," said Hecht.

Hecht also announced that the company has developed two new names to describe the services that PP&L, Inc., will offer to customers in the changing electricity marketplace. PP&L EnergyPlus will identify the company's offerings in the competitive electricity market, and PP&L Access will be used to identify services that are related to the delivery of electricity to more than 1.2 million customers in central and eastern Pennsylvania.

Also, the company's worldwide power operations, previously known as Power Markets Development Co., will now be named PP&L Global, Inc. And, Spectrum Energy Services, a subsidiary that provides engineering and other services, will be renamed PP&L Spectrum, Inc.

The new company logo will begin appearing on communications materials such as customer mailings and stationery in the near future, Hecht said. Signs on company facilities and logos on vehicles will be changed over time.

"We are excited about this new look for the company — a company that we have been working hard to reinvent over the past several years," said Hecht. "In that reinvention, we are being very careful not to lose the qualities that our customers have, for years, valued most: dependability, value, friendly service and community involvement.

"The PP&L of today truly is a brand new company with more than 75 years of experience," said Hecht.

Here's the new naming system:

• PP&L Resources, Inc. The holding company for the enterprise, headquartered in Allentown, Pa.
• PP&L, Inc. The expanded electric company, formerly known as Pennsylvania Power & Light Co., headquartered in Allentown.
• PP&L EnergyPlus. The identification that PP&L, Inc., will use to market electricity and other services in the new competitive energy marketplace.
• PP&L Access. The name for the electricity delivery services that PP&L, Inc., will provide in an open and nondiscriminatory way to 1.2 million customers and to suppliers as Pennsylvania's electricity generation market becomes competitive.
• PP&L Global. A subsidiary of PP&L Resources that has ownership interests and commitments totaling about $370 million in energy projects around the world; formerly known as Power Markets Development Co. Headquartered in Fairfax, Va.
• PP&L Spectrum. A subsidiary of PP&L Resources that markets energy-related services; formerly known as Spectrum Energy Services. Headquartered in Allentown.

The changes will not affect the company's listing on the New York Stock Exchange, which will remain PPL.

PP&L, Inc., a subsidiary of PP&L Resources, Inc., provides electricity delivery service to 1.2 million customers in eastern and central Pennsylvania, sells retail electricity throughout the state of Pennsylvania and markets wholesale electricity throughout the East.