LG&E Energy said it plans to reduce its 5,500-employeeworkforce by 250 positions (5%) over the next few months in aneffort to streamline and further integrate its two utilityoperations, Louisville Gas and Electric and Kentucky Utilities.Enhanced early retirement and severance programs will be offered tocompany employees to achieve the reduction. The company hopes toachieve these reductions through voluntary means and will useinvoluntary separation only as a last resort.

“While the decision to reduce our work force is difficult, it isconsistent with our goal to continue to integrate the operations ofKU and LG&E…,” said Victor A. Staffieri, president ofLG&E Energy. LG&E and KU, Kentucky’s two largest electriccompanies, merged in spring of 1998. The combined utility haselectric and gas assets worth more than $5 billion and serves morethan 1.1 million customers in Kentucky, as well as a parts ofVirginia and Tennessee.

As part of the continued streamlining process, LG&E Energywill step up its efforts to consolidate many of its smallerbusiness offices throughout the Commonwealth and replace them withenhanced telephone services and extended hour walk-up pay stations.Ultimately, the company plans to offer customers the option ofdoing business from their homes.

“By further integrating our utility operations and utilizingadvanced technology we can offer customers more options,” Staffierisaid.

In another announcement by the company yesterday, subsidiaryLouisville Gas and Electric Co. released plans to file forincreased rates at the end of the first quarter with the KentuckyPublic Service Commission (PSC). It hasn’t had a rate increase in adecade and plans to raise gas rates between $15 and $20 million inorder to recover higher costs for providing distribution services.Implementation is expected before this fall.

Rocco Canonica

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