Illustrative Case: PPL Grower-Processor Moves Off Hourly Default Before Flower Expansion

The facility and starting situation

Assume a medical grower-processor outside Lancaster on a PPL Electric account in PJM [pa-puc-retail-markets]. Pennsylvania issues combined grower-processor permits capped at 25 statewide, with cultivation and extraction under one license [pa-doh-growers-processors]. This operator holds one of those permits and runs a 32,000-square-foot sealed indoor facility: 12,000 square feet of flowering canopy, 4,000 square feet of veg, extraction on the same meter, and a packaging line.

Lighting is LED at an assumed 38 watts per square foot in flower and 28 W in veg. HVAC and dehumidification are sized for central Pennsylvania humidity: the state averages 5,701 heating degree days and 706 cooling degree days, with summer dew points in the upper 60s and low 70s F [noaa-cag-pennsylvania]. Winter heating load runs from October through April; dehumidification peaks in July and August.

At commissioning the operator ran four flower rooms on identical 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. photoperiods. Interval data showed a summer peak of 420 kW and a winter peak of 360 kW. That placed the account on PPL Rate Schedule GS-3, general service with demand billing at secondary voltage [pa-papowerswitch]. Because measured demand exceeded the small C&I threshold, default generation was hourly priced rather than the semiannual fixed Price to Compare available to smaller accounts [pa-puc-retail-markets]. The CFO had not signed an Electric Generation Supplier contract and was fully exposed to PJM real-time prices during summer peaks.

Adult-use bills remain stalled in the legislature as of September 2026, so the operator sized the build for medical-only demand [pa-legis-sb120].

What the baseline bills showed

The table below mixes cited program rules with assumed usage. Only the rate class descriptions and state averages are facts; kWh, kW, and dollar totals are inputs for this example.

Line item	Assumption or rate	Monthly (summer)	Monthly (winter)	Notes
Flower lighting	456 kW on 12 h/day	166,320 kWh	166,320 kWh	Assumed load
Veg and extraction	85 kW blended	61,200 kWh	61,200 kWh	Assumed load
HVAC and dehumid	180 kW summer / 140 kW winter avg	129,600 kWh	100,800 kWh	Assumed load
House load	35 kW continuous	25,550 kWh	25,550 kWh	Assumed load
Measured peak demand	420 kW / 360 kW	420 kW	360 kW	Sets PLC tag
PPL distribution demand	Assume $8.50 per kW [pa-papowerswitch]	$3,570	$3,060	Confirm on tariff
Hourly default energy	Modeled 11.2 cents per kWh avg summer	~$42,500	~$38,200	PJM-indexed default
Capacity pass-through	Assume 420 kW PLC at $3.80/kW-mo	$1,596	$1,596	Full-year tag from summer peak
Approximate total		~$52,000	~$46,000	Excludes taxes and riders

Annualized usage was about 4.4 million kWh. At the EIA June 2026 Pennsylvania commercial average of 13.33 cents per kWh, that stack would cost roughly $586,000 all-in on paper [eia-epm-5-6-a]. The operator's actual bills ran higher in July and August when PJM day-ahead prices spiked during heat events.

The capacity line hurt most. All Pennsylvania EDCs pass PJM capacity costs based on the customer's peak load contribution tag set by the summer coincident peak, regardless of supplier [pa-puc-retail-markets]. A single 420 kW interval in August locked a full year of capacity charges even when winter peaks fell to 360 kW.

What changed

Four interventions ran over two quarters before the operator signed supply.

Staggered photoperiods. Four flower rooms split into two blocks: two on 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. and two on 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Dehumidifier setpoints ramped with each block so compressor starts did not stack on the lighting step. Summer peak demand fell from 420 kW to 355 kW. See peak demand vs. peak usage for why the 30-minute interval shape matters.

VFDs on supply and exhaust fans. PPL's business energy efficiency program covers variable-frequency drives on eligible motors [ppl-biz-savings]. Retrofitting eight supply fans cut an assumed 18 kW from the continuous load and qualified for a prescriptive rebate that shortened payback.

PLC tag review before expansion. Engineering confirmed a planned fifth flower room would stay under 400 kW with the stagger blocks in place. Crossing into LP-4 territory would change both distribution demand and default-service mechanics [pa-papowerswitch].

Fixed EGS contract after peaks stabilized. Only after two months of interval data showed peaks below 360 kW did the operator solicit quotes through PAPowerSwitch [pa-papowerswitch]. The winning bid was a 24-month fixed generation price with capacity and transmission structured as a fixed adder, replacing hourly default exposure. Pennsylvania grants full commercial choice to all PPL customers [pa-puc-retail-markets].

The math after

Assume the stagger and VFD work cut summer peak demand from 420 kW to 355 kW and held winter peak at 340 kW. The account remained on GS-3, but capacity pass-through applied to a lower PLC tag after the next PJM reset cycle.

Line item	Before (summer month)	After (summer month)	Change
Peak demand	420 kW	355 kW	−65 kW
PPL distribution demand	$3,570	$3,018	−$552
Capacity pass-through	$1,596	$1,349	−$247
Hourly default energy	~$42,500		Removed
Fixed EGS supply (all-in modeled)		~$39,800	24-month term
Modeled annual all-in	~$580,000	~$545,000	~−$35,000

The kWh reduction from VFDs was modest, about 78,000 kWh a year. Peak kW drove most of the capacity and distribution savings. At the EIA Pennsylvania industrial average of 10.10 cents per kWh, the same usage would look cheaper on a blended rate [eia-epm-5-6-a], but this facility still faced per-kW delivery charges because demand metering, not kWh alone, sets the bill shape [pa-papowerswitch].

What did not work

Night-only photoperiods. PPL bills GS-3 on the highest 30-minute interval in the month, not a time-of-day split. A midnight-to-noon schedule did not remove the demand charge and created staffing gaps the operator abandoned after one harvest cycle.

Demand-response enrollment without a curtailment plan. Pennsylvania EDCs run Act 129 demand response programs through curtailment service providers [pa-papowerswitch]. A flowering room cannot shed 200 kW for four hours without crop risk. The operator enrolled, declined to curtail during a test event, and paid a nominal penalty.

Switching supply before fixing peaks. The first EGS quote saved 0.6 cents per kWh on energy but left the 420 kW PLC tag in place for another capacity year. Fixing stagger first, then contracting, captured both levers.

Waiting for adult-use legalization. SB 120 cleared a Senate committee but had not reached a floor vote as of June 2026 [pa-legis-sb120]. Delaying efficiency work for a demand surge that might not arrive would have left hourly default exposure in place through another summer.

PPL territory default resets and PLC tags

PPL Electric customers in Pennsylvania face default generation resets and PJM capacity pass-through on supply contracts. Peak load contribution tags follow meter behavior during Coincident Peak hours. Interval review before supplier RFP improves block sizing [pa-puc-retail-markets].

PPL GS demand even for mixed-use accounts

Grower-processor accounts on PPL General Service still see distribution demand charges when billing demand exceeds tariff minimums [ppl-rates-tariff]. Supply switch changes generation line items only. Interval review before enrollment separates cultivation peaks from batch processing peaks for supplier block sizing [pa-puc-retail-markets].

Separate interval tags for grow and process peaks

If cultivation and processing share a meter, supplier block sizing should use the higher of grow-only or combined peaks depending on contract bandwidth language [pa-puc-retail-markets].

PPL witness test for processor expansion

Adding solvent recovery load may trigger utility review of service size even when supply contract bandwidth allows higher kWh. Coordinate witness test with supplier block amendment [pa-puc-retail-markets].

Bandwidth on shared grow-processor meter

When cultivation and processing share a PPL meter, supplier bandwidth should reflect combined peak months, not veg-only commissioning [pa-puc-retail-markets].

Shared meter label in supplier CRM

Tag supplier CRM accounts as grow-processor shared meter so bandwidth reviews trigger when batch equipment adds load [pa-puc-retail-markets].

Lessons that transfer to other Pennsylvania grower-processors

Read your rate class and default-service type before you sign supply. PPL GS-3 carries per-kW distribution demand; hourly default service exposes you to PJM real-time prices above the small C&I threshold [pa-puc-retail-markets]. Stagger flower rooms before you buy hardware; shifting one photoperiod costs nothing except controller programming. Claim PPL efficiency rebates on loads you plan to keep [ppl-biz-savings]. Shop through PAPowerSwitch with twelve months of interval data [pa-papowerswitch]. Capacity cost follows your summer PLC tag for a full year, so treat August peaks as a balance-sheet line, not a weather event. See demand charges explained and the FAQ on lowering grow bills.