​Company encourages residents be prepared and have a plan for whatever comes this summer storm and hurricane season

 WASHINGTON, DC (June 21, 2022) — As summer kicks off, Pepco has been performing essential work to ready the local energy grid to meet increased customer demand and keep homes and businesses powered all summer long. Every day, Pepco performs essential maintenance and grid modernization upgrades to further enhance service reliability for its 906,000 customers in the District of Columbia and Maryland, and to harden energy infrastructure against the growing impacts of more severe weather as a result of climate change.

"Our more than 1,800 dedicated employees have been working alongside local contractors to ready the local energy grid against the impacts of summer storms, and this work will continue all summer, especially with another forecasted active hurricane season," said Tamla Olivier, senior vice president and COO, Pepco Holdings. "Being ready for summer is our communal responsibility. You have our commitment that we will do our part each day to be ready throughout the summer storm season. We also encourage our customers to utilize the many resources we offer to prepare for summer storms and hurricanes, as well as tips and information to save money and energy during the warmer summer months."   

Pepco has several major projects across the service area to help modernize the local energy grid and enhance reliability for customers, including:

• Capital Grid – The Capital Grid project is a 10-year strategy to strengthen the resiliency and reliability of the District's energy grid by modernizing aging infrastructure while creating a smarter energy system. The upgraded grid will support the city's continued growth, accommodate more customer-generated power and have built-in technologies that help the District meet its clean energy goals.
• DC PLUG – The District of Columbia Power Line Undergrounding (DC PLUG) initiative is a multi-year program focused on the underground placement of the most vulnerable distribution power lines. The DC PLUG initiative targeted improved resiliency and reliability in the face of increasingly severe storms.
• Benning Area Reliability Plan – The Benning Area Reliability Plan is a coordinated effort to improve the reliability of service in the community by upgrading equipment such as utility poles and overhead lines and adding new technology to the system. Pepco also added new feeders to the system, which will increase capacity to meet the area's growing demand for electricity.
• Sligo to Linden Project – The Sligo to Linden Project includes three new 69 kilovolt underground lines between the Sligo and Linden substations to increase area reliability.
  

As a result of ongoing reliability projects and grid resiliency efforts to strengthen energy infrastructure against increasingly severe weather, Pepco customers in Maryland experienced the lowest frequency of electric outages ever in 2021. District of Columbia customers experienced the second lowest frequency of electric outages ever, just shy of the record set in 2020. Over the past decade, the frequency of electric outages Pepco customers have experienced has decreased 69 percent, which is a testament to the ongoing benefits of implementing best practices across the Exelon family of companies.

In addition to work to enhance the energy grid, Pepco completes hundreds of tasks to prepare for the summer season, including system work, testing and drills. As part of the Exelon family of companies, Pepco share best practices with its sister companies – Atlantic City Electric, BGE, ComEd, Delmarva Power, and PECO – and participates in collaborative emergency response training exercises to ensure it can provide seamless support and resources during a storm or emergency restoration effort.

Just as Pepco prepares for summer weather and severe storms, the company encourages its customers to be ready as well. Here are some tips:

• Assemble an emergency storm kit. Include battery-powered radio, flashlight, a first-aid kit, battery-powered or windup clock, extra batteries, medications, multi-purpose tool, and list of important/emergency phone numbers.
• Have a supply of bottled water and easy-to-prepare, non-perishable foods available to last at least 72 hours.
• Keep a flashlight with fresh batteries on each floor of your home.
• Identify an alternate location for you and/or your family in case of an extended outage.
• It's extremely important to review the manufacturer's instructions for safe operations of your generator. Do not connect a generator directly to your home's wiring, and never use a generator indoors or any enclosed area.
• Download Pepco's mobile app at pepco.com/MobileApp.
• For a checklist of other items to include in your emergency kit, visit pepco.com/StormPrep.

Being prepared is a responsibility everyone should take seriously. If a severe storm hits, monitor local weather reports regularly and follow the advice of local emergency management officials. Residents should stay away from downed wires and immediately report a downed wire or service issue by calling 877-PEPCO-62 (877-737-2662), visiting pepco.com, or through the company's mobile app. Customers can also report an outage by texting "OUT" to 48710. Customers must first text "ADD OUTAGE" to 48710 to sign up for this service.

As temperatures rise, energy usage typically starts to climb as well. Pepco provides important tips and information to empower customers to better manage their energy use and bills.

• Manage your bill on My Account . Online energy management tools show you how much energy you are using. The bill to date feature lets you know what your bill costs are to date at any time during the month. You can also get tips based on your energy saving goals.
• Install energy efficient light bulbs. Energy-efficient LED bulbs use up to 75 percent less energy than standard bulbs and create little heat that can in turn cause cooling devices to work harder.
• Check your thermostat. Set your thermostat a few degrees higher in the summer, if health permits.
• Adjust your blinds. Lower the blinds during the day in the summer to keep the heating effects of the hot sun out.
• More tips and information available at pepco.com/WaysToSave.

To learn more about Pepco, visit The Source, our online newsroom. Find additional information by visiting pepco.com, on Facebook at facebook.com/PepcoConnect and on Twitter at twitter.com/PepcoConnect. Pepco's mobile app is available at pepco.com/MobileApp.