Philadelphia Gas Works (PGW) is the United States' largest municipally owned natural gas utility.[1] Construction was completed by engineer Samuel V. Merrick on January 22, 1838,[2] and operations continued from the 1800s to the present day.[3][4]
History
The Acorn gas range, designed by Norman Bel Geddes, from a PGW brochure of c. 1932–33.[5]
Less than a year after the passage of "An Ordinance For the Construction and Management of The Philadelphia Gas Works" by the Select and Common Councils of Philadelphia on March 21, 1835,[6] the Philadelphia Gas Works began providing gas service to the City of Philadelphia when the city's first 46 gas lights were turned on along Second Street, between Vine and South Streets on February 10, 1836. Construction of the Philadelphia Gas Works was subsequently completed by engineer Samuel V. Merrick on January 22, 1838.[7][8]
By the 1940s, PGW was serving some 500,000 customers in Philadelphia, providing 99% of the gas distributed within the city limits.[12] At this time, the gas provided was primarily carbureted water gas.[12] In 1947, the City of Philadelphia stated that it valued PGW at more than US$100,000,000.[13]
Similar contracts to the one implemented with UGI in 1897 continued to be approved by city leaders until December 1972, at which time Mayor Frank Rizzo and the Philadelphia City Council contracted with the nonprofit Philadelphia Facilities Management Corporation (PFMC) to operate and manage PGW, beginning on January 1, 1973.[14]
The seven-member board of directors of the Philadelphia Facilities Management Corporation is appointed by the mayor. Its charge, as set forth in a management agreement between the City and the PFMC, makes the PFMC responsible for all operations of PGW through an executive management team, which includes a chief executive officer, chief operating officer, and chief financial officer.[15]
In 2021, Philadelphia Gas Works executives agreed to begin exploring ways to reduce the utility's carbon footprint in furtherance of city objectives to reach net zero carbon emissions by the year 2050 in an effort to help fight climate change.[18]
In 2022, state utility regulators approved gas main replacement plans by the Philadelphia Gas Works to upgrade more than 1,000 miles of pipes that had been installed prior to World War II.[19]
Awards
The American Public Gas Association has awarded PGW its 2010 Marketing and Sales Award.[20] In 2009, PGW had an advertising campaign showing customers and the public about the value of natural gas.
^"The Gas Works." Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: The United States Gazette, October 3, 1838, p. 2 (subscription required).
^"The Gasworks of Philadelphia." Charleston, South Carolina: The Charleston Daily Courier, February 27, 1847, p. 3 (subscription required).
^"Gas Trust Incidentals." Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: The Philadelphia Times, May 9, 1882, p. 1 (subscription required).
^Blaszczyk, Regina Lee. (2012) "Imagining Consumers: Norman Bel Geddes and American Consumer Culture", in Norman Bel Geddes Designs America, ed. by Donald Albrecht. New York: Abrams. pp. 70-93 (p. 72).
^"PGW Wins National Award". Philadelphia Public Record. James Tayoun, Sr. 2010-09-09. p. 6. Retrieved 2010-09-10. The Philadelphia Gas Works has received the American Public Gas Association's prestigious 2010 Marketing and Sales Award after a national competition. Jeffery Tuttle from CPS Energy said, 'PGW is the oldest municipal gas system in the US and on the eve of the 50th anniversary of APGA, it is an honor to recognize PGW with this Marketing and Sales Award.'
