NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) April 9, 2004--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services lowered its rating on Philadelphia Gas Works' (PGW) senior revenue bonds to 'BBB-' from 'BBB'. At the same time, Standard&Poor's lowered its rating on PGW's subordinate revenue bonds to 'BB+' from 'BBB-'. The outlook remains negative. PGW is the nation's largest municipally owned gas utility and the only local gas distributor serving approximately 498,000 customers within the city limits of Philadelphia, Pa. The utility has approximately $1 billion in total debt outstanding. The ratings downgrade reflects a weakened liquidity position and declining credit measures fueled by collection rates that deteriorated appreciably in the last year. "Standard&Poor's had anticipated collection rates to improve; however, as
