PPL Generation, a subsidiary of PPL Corporation (NYSE: PPL), announced Thursday (6/11) that Timothy S. Rausch, who has 25 years of experience in virtually all the disciplines of the nuclear power industry, will become the company’s senior vice president and chief nuclear officer.

PPL Susquehanna, LLC, a subsidiary of PPL Generation, is the primary owner and the operator of the two-unit Susquehanna nuclear power plant in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania.

“We are very pleased to welcome Tim Rausch to the PPL team. I’m very confident that his extensive hands-on experience combined with his proven, collaborative management approach will enable us to continue to improve the performance of the Susquehanna nuclear plant,” said William H. Spence, executive vice president and chief operating officer of PPL Corporation.

Spence has been serving as chief nuclear officer since late 2008, when Britt McKinney retired.

Rausch began his nuclear career with GPU Nuclear Corporation as an operator training instructor at the Oyster Creek plant in New Jersey.

After moving to the Perry nuclear plant in Ohio, he served as emergency operations procedures coordinator, as supervisor of operations, as training manager, as quality manager, as manager of engineering and as manager of maintenance before being named plant general manager in 2002.

In 2004, he accepted a position with Exelon Nuclear Corporation as design engineering director for the company’s entire fleet of 17 nuclear units. In 2005, he was promoted to engineering director for the Exelon fleet. And, in 2006, he was named to his current position, site vice president at the company’s Oyster Creek plant.

A native of Ohio, Rausch earned a bachelor of science in nuclear engineering from the University of Cincinnati and a master’s in business administration from Cleveland State University.

Spence said Rausch’s appointment is effective July 8. Rausch will report to Spence.

The Susquehanna plant, located in Luzerne County about seven miles north of Berwick, is owned jointly by PPL Susquehanna LLC and Allegheny Electric Cooperative Inc. and is operated by PPL Susquehanna.

PPL Susquehanna is one of PPL Corporation’s generating facilities. Headquartered in Allentown, Pa., PPL Corporation controls or owns more than 12,000 megawatts of generating capacity in the United States, sells energy in key U.S. markets and delivers electricity to about 4 million customers in Pennsylvania and the United Kingdom.