Founded 1912 | Parent organization LG&E and KU Energy | |
 | ||
Headquarters Lexington, Kentucky, United States | ||
Kentucky Utilities (KU) is based in Lexington, Kentucky and provides electricity to 77 counties in Kentucky. KU also serves five counties in Virginia under the name Old Dominion Power. It is owned by LG&E and KU Energy, LLC, which, in turn, is owned by PPL Corporation.
Contents
History
Kentucky Utilities was formed in 1912 to serve five areas of Kentucky. In 1926, KU acquired Old Dominion Power. KU was acquired by LG&E Energy, parent of Louisville Gas & Electric, in 1998. This combination was then acquired by British utility company Powergen in 2000, and ultimately Powergen was bought by German utility company E.ON in 2003. E.ON renamed LG&E Energy as E.ON U.S. In 2010, E.ON U.S. was bought by PPL Corporation, who changed the name of the company to LG&E and KU Energy.
The use of the plural Utilities refers to the company's early sales mix of electricity and other utilities, including ice, which in its early days of mass-production, was made in some areas by electric utilities.
KU's facilities include Herrington Lake, near Burgin, Kentucky. It was formed in 1926 by constructing Dix Dam, which contained hydro-electric generators. The company's distribution dispatch is located in Lexington.
Acquisition by PPL Corporation
PPL and E.ON announced on April 28, 2010 a definitive agreement under which PPL would acquire E.ON US, the parent company of KU and Louisville Gas & Electric, for $7.625 billion. The sale was closed on November 1, 2010.