Duke Energy Corporation is an American electric power and natural gas
holding company
A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...
headquartered in
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...
.
Overview
Based in Charlotte, North Carolina, Duke Energy owns 58,200
megawatts
The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James Wat ...
of base-load and peak generation in the United States, which it distributes to its 7.2 million customers. The company has approximately 29,000 employees. Duke Energy's service territory covers with of distribution lines. Almost all of Duke Energy's Midwest generation comes from coal,
natural gas
Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbo ...
, or oil, while half of its Carolinas generation comes from its
nuclear power plants. During 2006, Duke Energy generated 148,798,332 megawatt-hours of electrical energy.
Duke Energy Renewable Services (DERS), a subsidiary of Duke Energy, specializes in the development, ownership, and operation of various generation facilities throughout the United States. This segment of the company operates 1,700 megawatts of generation. 240 megawatts of
wind generation
Wind power or wind energy is mostly the use of wind turbines to generate electricity. Wind power is a popular, sustainable, renewable energy source that has a much smaller impact on the environment than burning fossil fuels. Historically ...
were under construction and 1,500 additional megawatts of wind generation were in planning stages.
[
] On September 9, 2008, DERS updated its projections for future
wind power
Wind power or wind energy is mostly the use of wind turbines to generate electricity. Wind power is a popular, sustainable, renewable energy source that has a much smaller impact on the environment than burning fossil fuels. Historically ...
capacity. By the end of 2008, it would have over 500 MW of
nameplate capacity
Nameplate capacity, also known as the rated capacity, nominal capacity, installed capacity, or maximum effect, is the intended full-load sustained output of a facility such as a power station, of wind power online, and an additional 5,000 MW in development.
[
]
Subsidiaries
*Duke Energy Carolinas (formerly Duke Power)
*Duke Energy Ohio (formerly Cincinnati Gas & Electric Company, via
Cinergy
Cinergy Corp. ( ) was an energy company based in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States, from 1994 to 2006. Its name is a play on the words "synergy", "energy", and "Cincinnati".
History
Cinergy was created on October 24, 1994, from the merger of the C ...
)
*Duke Energy Kentucky (formerly Union Light, Heat & Power, via Cinergy)
*Duke Energy Indiana (formerly Public Service Indiana, via Cinergy)
*
Duke Energy Florida
Duke Energy Florida, formerly Florida Power, was the generation, transmission, and distribution sector of Florida Progress Corporation. The company distributed power over much of central and north Florida. Their service area covers approximately ...
(formerly Florida Power Corporation, via Progress Energy)
*Duke Energy Progress (formerly
Carolina Power and Light, via
Progress Energy)
*Duke Energy Renewables
*Duke Energy Retail
*Duke Energy International
History
The company began in 1900 as the Catawba Power Company when Dr. Walker Gill Wylie and his brother financed the building of a hydroelectric power station at India Hook Shoals along the Catawba River near
India Hook, South Carolina. When he needed additional funding to further his ambitious plan for construction of a series of hydroelectric power plants, Wylie convinced
James B. Duke and his partner James Blaney to invest in the Southern Power Company, founded in 1905.
In 1917 James Blaney was the founder of the Wateree Power Company that was formed as a holding company for several utilities that had been founded and/or owned by Duke, and Blaney his associates, and in 1924 the name was changed to Duke Power. In 1927, most of the subsidiary companies, including Southern Power Company, Catawba Power Company, Great Falls Power Company, and Western Carolina Power Company were merged into Duke Power, although Southern Public Utilities, 100% owned by Duke Power, maintained a legally separate existence for the retail marketing of Duke-generated power to residential and commercial customers. Southern Public Utilities also operated transit systems, which Duke eventually converted from streetcars to buses.
In 1988, Nantahala Power & Light Co., which served southwestern North Carolina, was purchased by Duke and is now operated under the Duke Power Nantahala Area brand. In 1990, Duke sold its remaining transit operations. Duke Power merged with PanEnergy, a natural gas company, in 1997 to form Duke Energy. The Duke Power name continued as the electric utility business of Duke Energy until the Cinergy merger.
With the purchase of
Cinergy Corporation announced in 2005 and completed on April 3, 2006, Duke Energy Corporation's customer base grew to include the
Midwestern United States
The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. I ...
as well. The company operates
nuclear power
Nuclear power is the use of nuclear reactions to produce electricity. Nuclear power can be obtained from nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear fusion reactions. Presently, the vast majority of electricity from nuclear power is produced ...
plants, coal-fired plants, conventional
hydroelectric plants, natural-gas turbines to handle peak demand, and pumped hydro storage. During 2006, Duke Energy also acquired
Chatham, Ontario-based
Union Gas
Union Gas was a major Canadian natural gas company based in Ontario. Its distribution arm serviced approximately 1.5 million customers in northern, southwestern and eastern Ontario. Union Gas has been a subsidiary of Enbridge since February 2017 ...
, which is regulated under the Ontario Energy Board Act (1998).
On January 3, 2007, Duke Energy spun off its gas business to form
Spectra Energy
Spectra Energy Corp, headquartered in Houston, Texas, operated in three key areas of the natural gas industry: transmission and storage, distribution, and gathering and processing. Spectra was formed in late 2006 from the spin-off from Duke ...
. Duke Energy shareholders received 1 share of Spectra Energy for each 2 shares of Duke Energy. After the spin-off, Duke Energy now receives the majority of its revenue from its electric operations in portions of North Carolina, South Carolina, Kentucky, Ohio, and Indiana. The spinoff to Spectra also included Union Gas, which Duke Energy acquired the previous year.
In 2011, Duke Energy worked with Charlotte’s business leader community to help build Charlotte into a
smart city
A smart city is a technologically modern urban area that uses different types of electronic methods and sensors to collect specific data. Information gained from that data is used to manage assets, resources and services efficiently; in retur ...
. The group called the initiative "Envision Charlotte". At the time, the group decided on a goal to reduce energy use in the "urban core of the city by 20 percent". To do so, the group focused on making energy consumption changes to commercial buildings larger than 10,000 square feet.
On July 3, 2012, Duke Energy merged with
Progress Energy Inc
Progress Energy, headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina, is a subsidiary of Duke Energy and prior to its merger with Duke Energy was a Fortune 500 energy company with more than 21,000 megawatts of generation capacity and $9 billion in annual re ...
with the Duke Energy name being retained along with the
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...
, headquarters.
Duke announced on June 18, 2013, that CEO Jim Rogers was retiring and Lynn Good would become the new CEO. Rogers has been CEO and Chairman since 2006, while Good was Chief Financial Officer of Duke since 2009, having joined Duke in the 2006 Cinergy merger. Rogers' retirement was part of an agreement to end an investigation into Duke's Progress Energy acquisition in 2012.
In 2016, Duke Energy purchased Piedmont Natural Gas for $4.9 billion to become its wholly owned subsidiary. Duke Energy completed selling its remaining power operations in Central and South America for $1.2 billion months afterwards. At one point Duke Energy had more than 4,300 megawatts of electric generation in Latin America. It operated eight hydroelectric power plants in Brazil with an installed capacity of 2,307 megawatts.
The company expects to spend $13 billion upgrading the North Carolina grid from 2017.
On December 3, 2022, an
attack was carried out on two Duke Energy substations located in
Moore County, North Carolina. Damage from the attack left up to 40,000 residents without electrical power for several days, with officials closing schools and declaring a state of emergency. The
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...
supported local investigators in case the incident met the definition of domestic terrorism under the
Patriot Act
The USA PATRIOT Act (commonly known as the Patriot Act) was a landmark Act of the United States Congress, signed into law by President George W. Bush. The formal name of the statute is the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appro ...
.
New nuclear power plant
On March 16, 2006, Duke Power announced that a
Cherokee County, South Carolina site had been selected for a potential new
nuclear power plant. The site is jointly owned by Duke Power and
Southern Company
Southern Company is an American gas and electric utility holding company based in the southern United States. It is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, with executive offices also located in Birmingham, Alabama. The company is the second largest ...
. Duke plans to develop the site for two
Westinghouse Electric Company
Westinghouse Electric Company LLC is an American nuclear power company formed in 1999 from the nuclear power division of the original Westinghouse Electric Corporation. It offers nuclear products and services to utilities internationally, includi ...
AP1000
The AP1000 is a nuclear power plant designed and sold by Westinghouse Electric Company. The plant is a pressurized water reactor with improved use of passive nuclear safety and many design features intended to lower its capital cost and impr ...
(advanced passive)
pressurized water reactor
A pressurized water reactor (PWR) is a type of light-water nuclear reactor. PWRs constitute the large majority of the world's nuclear power plants (with notable exceptions being the UK, Japan and Canada). In a PWR, the primary coolant (water) i ...
s. Each reactor is capable of producing approximately 1,117 megawatts. (See
Nuclear Power 2010 Program.)
On December 14, 2007, Duke Power submitted a
Combined Construction and Operating License
The Combined Construction and Operating License (Regulatory Guide 1.206, COL) replaced the previous Draft Regulatory Guide 1145 as the licensing process for new nuclear power plants in the United States. It is a part of a newer "streamlined" proce ...
to the
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, with an announcement that it will spend $160 million in 2008 on the plant with a total cost of $5 billion to $6 billion. The plant was approved in 2016.
In August 2017, Duke decided to seek permission from the North Carolina Utility Commission to cancel the project due to the bankruptcy of Westinghouse and "other market activity", although they will retain the option of restarting the project at some point in the future if circumstances change.
This site would have been adjacent to the old site, which was never completed and abandoned in the early 1980s, and used by
James Cameron as a film set for the 1989 movie ''
The Abyss
''The Abyss'' is a 1989 American science fiction film written and directed by James Cameron and starring Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, and Michael Biehn. When an American submarine sinks in the Caribbean, a US search and recovery tea ...
''.
In 2018, Duke Energy decided not to include new nuclear power in its long-range plans.
Headquarters buildings
J.A. Jones designed the first headquarters building, known as the Power Building, which was completed in 1927 at
440 South Church. It was five stories and . The Electric Center at 526 South Church Street opened in 1975 with an addition in 1988.
[ State Farm Insurance sold the Power Building in 2004 for $8 million to The Dilweg Cos., who anticipated significant development. Novare Group bought at 408 South Church Street for $17 million from The Dilweg Cos. in a deal announced March 27, 2006.][Doug Smith, "Atlanta Group Buys Power Building," ''The Charlotte Observer'', 28 March 2006, p. 1D.] The Power Building was demolished February 24, 2007.
Duke Energy Center at 550 South Tryon Street was announced as the company's headquarters in 2009. The company announced May 17, 2021 that the headquarters will move in 2023 to Duke Energy Plaza, across the street from the current headquarters. Childress Klein Childress ( ) may refer to:
People
* Alice Childress (1916–1994), American playwright and author
* Alvin Childress, American actor
* Bam Childress, American football player
* Bob Childress (1890–1956), American Presbyterian minister
* Brad ...
is developing the new building, which will allow Duke to sell its Church Street and College Street buildings, and end its lease at 400 South Tryon
400 South Tryon, formerly called the Wachovia Center, is a skyscraper in Charlotte center city, North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most pop ...
. Previously named Charlotte Metro Tower,[ the 40-story building will be purchased when completed for up to $675 million by Childress Klein and CGA Capital, in the largest real estate deal in the city's history, announced in December 2019.
]
Finances
For the fiscal year 2017, Duke Energy reported earnings of US$3.059 billion, with an annual revenue of US$23.565 billion, an increase of 3.6% over the previous fiscal cycle. Duke Energy's shares traded at over $79 per share, and its market capitalization was valued at over US$58.8 billion in November 2018.
Environmental record
In 1999, the United States Environmental Protection Agency
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an independent executive agency of the United States federal government tasked with environmental protection matters. President Richard Nixon proposed the establishment of EPA on July 9, 1970; it ...
commenced an enforcement action against Duke Energy for making modifications to very old and deteriorating coal-burning power plants without getting permits under the Clean Air Act. Duke asserted that a "modification" under the Clean Air Act did not require a permit. Environmental groups asserted that Duke was using loopholes in the law to increase emissions. Initially, Duke prevailed at the trial court level, but in 2006 the case was argued before the Supreme Court (''Environmental Defense
Environmental Defense Fund or EDF (formerly known as Environmental Defense) is a United States-based nonprofit environmental advocacy group. The group is known for its work on issues including global warming, ecosystem restoration, oceans, and hu ...
v. Duke Energy Corp.'' (05-848)). The Court unanimously ruled on April 2, 2007 that the modifications allowed the power plants to operate for more hours, increasing emissions, so Clean Air Act permits were needed.
In 2002, researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst
The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst, UMass) is a public research university in Amherst, Massachusetts and the sole public land-grant university in Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Founded in 1863 as an agricultural college, ...
identified Duke Energy as the 46th-largest corporate producer of air pollution in the United States, with roughly 36 million
pounds of toxic chemicals released annually into the air. Major pollutants included sulfuric and hydrochloric acid
Hydrochloric acid, also known as muriatic acid, is an aqueous solution of hydrogen chloride. It is a colorless solution with a distinctive pungent smell. It is classified as a strong acid
Acid strength is the tendency of an acid, symbol ...
, chromium compounds, and hydrogen fluoride. The Political Economy Research Institute
The Political Economy Research Institute (PERI) is an independent research unit at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. According to its mission statement, it "...promotes human and ecological well-being through our original research". PERI was ...
ranks Duke Energy 13th among corporations emitting airborne pollutants in the United States. The ranking is based on the quantity (80 million pounds in 2005) and toxicity of the emissions. This change reflects the purchase of fossil fuel-heavy Cinergy, which occurred in 2005.
In early 2008, Duke Energy announced a plan to build the new, 800-megawatt Cliffside Unit 6 coal plant west of Charlotte, North Carolina. The plan has been strongly opposed by environmental groups such as Rising Tide North America, Rainforest Action Network, the community-based Canary Coalition as well as the Southern Environmental Law Center
Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) is the largest 501(c)(3) organization, 501(c)(3) environmental nonprofit organization in the Southern region, with more than 80 attorneys and 75 staff members working at the local, state, and federal level ...
, which has threatened to sue Duke if it does not halt construction plans. On April 1, activists locked themselves to machinery at the Cliffside construction area as part of Fossil Fools Day.
Duke Energy has been "one of the most vocal advocates" for a " cap-and-trade" system to combat global CO2 emissions,["Duke Energy Quits The Right-Wing National Association Of Manufacturers Over Differences On Climate Policy"]
, ''ThinkProgress
''ThinkProgress'' was an American progressive news website that was active from 2005 to 2019. It was a project of the Center for American Progress Action Fund (CAP Action), a progressive public policy research and advocacy organization. Found ...
'' "and the company's CEO, Jim Rogers, thinks the company will profit from cap-and-trade". The company left the National Association of Manufacturers
The National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) is an advocacy group headquartered in Washington, D.C., with additional offices across the United States. It is the nation's largest manufacturing industrial trade association, representing 14,000 s ...
in part over differences on climate policy.[
In a joint venture with the French-based global energy firm AREVA, under the nominal name of ADAGE, Duke Energy has planned a "Green" biomass burning facility in Mason County, Washington and is negotiating with forestland owners to secure the 600,000 tons of wood debris it needs yearly to fuel its $250 million biomass plant.
The joint venture between electric power company Duke Energy and global nuclear services giant AREVA was created to build wood ]waste-to-energy
Waste-to-energy (WtE) or energy-from-waste (EfW) is the process of generating energy in the form of electricity and/or heat from the primary treatment of waste, or the processing of waste into a fuel source. WtE is a form of energy recovery. Mo ...
power plants around the country.
ADAGE president Reed Wills announced the first Northwest outpost will be in the struggling timber town of Shelton, Washington.
The following pollutants are provided by DUKE-AREVA-ADAGE in their application for permit to the Department of Environmental Protection for a similar type of plant in Florida.
* 248 tons per year – particulate matter
* 288 tons per year – particulate matter 10
* 233 tons per year – particulate matter 2.5
* 249 tons per year – NOx (nitrogen oxides)
* 246 tons per year – SO2 (sulfur dioxide)
* 248 tons per year – CO (carbon monoxide)
* 40 tons per year – H2SO4 – (sulfuric acid mist)
* 63 tons per year – VOC (volatile organic compounds)
* 29 tons per year – F (fluorides)
Generating facilities
* This list is partially complete due to the July 3, 2012, merger with Progress Energy.
Biomass fired
*Shelton Biomass Facility (proposed)
Nuclear
*Catawba Nuclear Station
The Catawba Nuclear Station is a nuclear power plant located on a peninsula, called "Concord Peninsula", that reaches out into Lake Wylie, in York, South Carolina, USA. Catawba utilizes a pair of Westinghouse four-loop pressurized water reacto ...
* McGuire Nuclear Station
* Oconee Nuclear Station
* Shearon Harris Nuclear Power Plant
*H. B. Robinson Nuclear Generating Station
The H. B. Robinson Steam Electric Plant, also known as Robinson Nuclear Plant, is a nuclear power plant located near Hartsville, South Carolina. The plant consists of one Westinghouse Electric Company, Westinghouse 759 Megawatt, MW pressuriz ...
*Brunswick Nuclear Generating Station
The Brunswick nuclear power plant, named for Brunswick County, North Carolina, covers at above sea level about from the Atlantic Ocean. The site is adjacent to the town of Southport, North Carolina, and to wetlands and woodlands, and was opene ...
* Crystal River Nuclear Power Plant (retired February 2013)
* William States Lee III Nuclear Generating Station - Future
Coal-fired
* Allen Steam Station
* Belews Creek Steam Station
* Beckjord Power Station
*Cayuga Generating Station Cayuga Generating Station is an electricity-generating facility, located in Eugene Township, Vermillion County, near Cayuga, Indiana. Its almost identical, coal-fired Units 1 and 2 were launched into service in 1970 and 1972, and have a combined na ...
* Crystal River Energy Complex
* East Bend Station
* Edwardsport Station
*Gallagher Station
* Gibson Station
* Marshall Steam Station
*Mayo Plant
*Miami Fort Power Station
The Miami Fort Generating Station is a dual-fuel power generating facility. It is a major coal-fired electrical power station, supplemented with a small oil-fired facility. Miami Fort is located in Miami Township, Hamilton County, immediately e ...
(purchased by Dynegy
Dynegy Inc. is an electric company based in Houston, Texas, in the United States. It owns and operates a number of power stations in the U.S., all of which are natural gas-fueled or coal-fueled. Dynegy was acquired by Vistra Corp on April 9, 2 ...
, 2014)
* Riverbend Steam Station (retired)
* Roxboro Steam Plant
*Wabash River Station
*William H. Zimmer Power Station
The William H. Zimmer Power Station, located near Moscow, Ohio, was a 1.35-gigawatt (1,351 megawatt, MW) Fossil fuel power station#Coal, coal power plant. Planned by Cincinnati Gas and Electric (CG&E) (a forerunner of Duke Energy), with Columbus & ...
(purchased by Dynegy, 2014)
Hydroelectric
Conventional hydro
Following is a list of Duke Energy's thirty conventional hydroelectric facilities, in order of average electric production. All properties are 100% owned by Duke, and all but Markland are located in North Carolina and South Carolina (Markland is located in southern Indiana
Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
).
* Blewett Falls Hydroelectric Plant
* Cowans Ford Hydro Station, 350 MW average capacity
* Keowee Hydro Station, 158 MW
* Walters Hydroelectric Plant, 112 MW
* Tillery Hydroelectric Plant, 87 MW
* Rocky Creek & Cedar Creek Hydro Stations, combined 73 MW
* Great Falls & Dearborn Hydro Stations, combined 70 MW
* Markland Hydro Station, 65 MW
* Mountain Island Hydro Station, 60 MW
* Lake Wylie Hydro Station, 60 MW
* Wateree Hydro Station, 56 MW
* Fishing Creek Hydro Station, 37 MW
* Oxford Hydro Station, 36 MW
* Bridgewater Hydro Station at Lake James
Lake James is a large reservoir in the mountains of Western North Carolina which straddles the border between Burke and McDowell Counties. It is named for tobacco tycoon and benefactor of Duke University James Buchanan Duke. The lake, with su ...
, 31.5 MW
* Rhodhiss Hydro Station, 26 MW
* Lookout Shoals Hydro Station, 26 MW
* Blewett Hydroelectric Plant, 22 MW
* Ninety-Nine Islands Plant, 18 MW
* Gaston Shoals Plant, 9 MW
* Tuxedo Plant, 5 MW
* Marshall Plant, 4 MW
* and ten clustered locations at Nantahala, in mountainous southwestern North Carolina, producing a cumulative 99 MW
Pumped-storage hydro
*Bad Creek Hydroelectric Station
The Bad Creek Hydroelectric Station is a pumped-storage hydroelectric power station located north of Salem in Oconee County, South Carolina. The power plant is owned by Duke Energy and its last generator was commissioned in 1991. The power sta ...
* Jocassee Pumped-Storage Generating Station
Oil and gas-fired
*Anclote Station
* Asheville Combustion Turbines
*Bartow Combined Cycle Station
*Buck Steam Station
The Buck Steam Station is a 369-Watt, MW formerly coal-fired electrical power plant, owned by Duke Energy. There are also three natural gas-fueled gas turbine, combustion turbines at the location that provide an additional 93 MW (and which began o ...
*Buzzard Roost Station
*Cayuga Combustion Turbine Station
*Cliffside Steam Station
*Connersville Peaking Station
*Dan River Steam Station
The Dan River Steam Station is a power plant in Eden, North Carolina, owned by Duke Energy. The plant comprises three natural gas-fueled combustion turbines, which began operation in 1968.), and two natural gas-fueled combined cycle turbines ar ...
* Darlington County Electric Plant
*Henry County Peaking Station
*Hines Energy Complex
*H.F. Lee Energy Complex
The H.F. Lee Energy Complex, formerly the Goldsboro Plant, is an electrical power generating complex operated by Duke Energy.
The power complex was originally owned by the Carolina Power & Light Company, which inaugurated a coal-fired power plant ...
*Lee Steam Station
* W.S. Lee Steam Station
*Lincoln Combustion Turbine Station
*Madison Peaking Station
*Miami-Wabash Peaking Station
*Mill Creek Combustion Turbine Station
*Noblesville Station
*Rockingham Station
* Smith Energy Complex
* Sutton Combined Cycle Plant
*Wabash River Repowering Station
*Wheatland Peaking Station
*Woodsdale Station
Solar farms
Citing the falling cost of building solar farms, Duke Energy announced plans in 2017 to launch three new such projects in Kentucky. Two will be in Kenton County and one will be in Grant County. Together the three plants will create more than 6.7 MW of power. These join several other solar farms including:
*Davidson County Solar Farm
The Davidson County Solar Farm is a 17.2 megawatt solar power station located in the heart of North Carolina, near the community of Linwood. SunEdison built the array of photovoltaic panels, and Duke Energy buys all the output from the Photovolta ...
*Martins Creek Solar Farm 1 MW (Murphy, NC)
*Culberson Solar Farm 1 MW (Murphy, NC)
*Osceola Solar Facility 4 MW (St.Petersburg, Fla)
Additionally, Duke Energy added 451 MW of solar capacity to North Carolina’s grid in 2017.
*Hamilton Solar Power Plant 74.9 MW (Jasper, FL)
*Columbia Solar Power Plant 74.9 MW (Fort White, FL) (opening in 2020)
*Live Oak Solar Power Plant ? MW (Live Oak, FL)
In 2020 Duke Energy began commercial operations of several farms in Texas, operating alongside its Farm from 2010.
* Blue Wing Solar Project (San Antonio, TX)
* Lapetus Solar Project 100 MW (Andrews County, TX)
* Holstein Solar Project 200 MW (Nolan County, TX)
* Rambler Solar Project 200 MW (Tom Green County, TX)
Wind farms
* Los Vientos Wind Farm
* Shirley Wind
Electric vehicles
Duke Energy announced in October 2018 that it would install 530 electric car charging stations around Florida. Ten percent of the stations will go into low income communities.
Awards
Duke Energy has been chosen as one of The 50 Best Employers In America by Business Insider
In 2002, Duke Energy was awarded the Ig Nobel Prize in Economics for "adapting the mathematical concept of imaginary numbers for use in the business world".
Criticism
In December 2000, Cinergy Corp agreed to pay $1.4B to settle allegations that its coal plants illegally polluted the air. Duke Energy completed its acquisition of Cinergy Corp in 2006.
In July 2004, Duke Energy agreed to pay $208M to settle allegations that it had engaged in price gouging in California during the energy crisis of 2000 and 2001.
In December 2009, Duke Energy agreed to spend approximately $93M to resolve violations of the Clean Air Act. Duke became obligated to make investments that were expected to reduce sulfur dioxide emissions by 86%.
On February 14, 2011, Greenpeace launched a campaign in which Phil Radford
Philip David Radford (born January 2, 1976) is an American activist who served as the executive director of Greenpeace USA. He is the founder and President of Progressive Power Lab, an organization that incubates companies and non-profits that b ...
called on Duke Energy to abandon mountaintop removal
Mountaintop removal mining (MTR), also known as mountaintop mining (MTM), is a form of surface mining at the summit or summit ridge of a mountain. Coal seams are extracted from a mountain by removing the land, or overburden, above the seams. Thi ...
coal, produce a third of its energy from renewable sources by 2020, and abandon coal altogether by 2030."
In May 2011, Duke agreed to pay $30M to resolve allegations that changes made to the company pension plan disproportionately harmed employees over 40, costing many of them up to half of their accrued benefits.
In December 2011, the non-partisan organization Public Campaign
Every Voice is an American nonprofit, progressive liberal political advocacy organization. criticized Duke Energy for spending $17.47 million on lobbying
In politics, lobbying, persuasion or interest representation is the act of lawfully attempting to influence the actions, policies, or decisions of government officials, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. Lobbying, which ...
. It also criticized Duke for not paying any taxes from 2008 to 2010 and receiving $216 million in tax rebates, in spite of turning a $5.4 billion profit and extensively raising executive compensations.
In 2012, Greenpeace protested Duke's lobbying of the Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
Active parties Africa
*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
*Demo ...
, including its funding
Funding is the act of providing resources to finance a need, program, or project. While this is usually in the form of money, it can also take the form of effort or time from an organization or company. Generally, this word is used when a firm use ...
of the 2012 Democratic National Convention.
In July 2012, Duke Energy was criticized for paying former Progress Energy CEO Bill Johnson $44.7 million in compensation, including a $10 million severance, for something close to 20 minutes on the job as Duke's CEO.
In 2012, Duke Energy sued Citrus County, Florida claiming its tax bill was too high. The county hired an outside appraiser who found that there were a lot of unreported and underreported items and the tax claim was actually too low.
In May 2013, university students launched a campaign for Brown University to divest fossil fuels, specifically referring to Duke Energy and other coal plant operators.
On February 2 2014, the massive Dan River coal-ash spill led to a grand jury investigation into Duke Energy. The initial investigation was overseen by Governor Pat McCrory, who was accused of intervening on Duke's behalf as he had been a Duke Energy employee for 28 years. Prosecutors went looking for any cash or items of value that might have been given to Governor McCrory and members of his administration in exchange for cheap settlements. Duke Energy was prosecuted, pled guilty to nine charges of criminal negligence
In criminal law, criminal negligence is a surrogate state of mind required to constitute a ''conventional'' (as opposed to ''strictly liable'') offense. It is not, strictly speaking, a (Law Latin for "guilty mind") because it refers to an ob ...
, and agreed to pay $102 million in fines and restitutions. Duke Energy was also ordered to close all of its 32 ash ponds in the state of North Carolina by 2029.
In September 2016, the Government Pension Fund of Norway
The Government Pension Fund of Norway ( no, Statens pensjonsfond) comprises two entirely separate sovereign wealth funds owned by the government of Norway.
The Government Pension Fund Global, also known as the Oil Fund, was established in 1990 t ...
, then worth $900 billion, excluded Duke Energy and its subsidiaries from the fund, citing "risk of severe environmental damage".
In August 2020, environmental watchdog EWG released a report accusing Duke Energy of charging Indiana
Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
ratepayers for $12 billion worth of failed projects. This was the direct consequence of a controversial bill passed in Indiana earlier that year. Projects included two natural gas pipelines and two retired nuclear power plants. The company was also accused of having plans to charge the Indiana ratepayer for $8 billion in coal-ash pond closure and cleanup costs.
In 2021, investigative reporting by the ''Orlando Sun Sentinel'' revealed that Duke Energy, FPL (Nextera Energy
NextEra Energy, Inc. is an American energy company with about 58 GW of generating capacity (24 GW of which were from fossil fuel sources), revenues of over $18 billion in 2020, and about 14,900 employees throughout the US and Canada. It is the ...
), and TECO Energy
TECO Energy Inc. is an energy-related holding company based in Tampa, Florida, and a subsidiary of Emera Incorporated. TECO Energy has several subsidiaries: Tampa Electric Company, which provides electricity to the Tampa Bay Area and parts of C ...
put forth more than $3 million to promote "ghost" spoiler candidates in key Florida legislature races. The scheme involved former senator Frank Artiles
Frank Artiles (born April 22, 1973) is a Cuban-American Republican politician from Florida. He served three terms in the Florida House of Representatives, representing parts of Miami-Dade County from 2010 to 2016, before being elected to the Fl ...
and was effective in costing the Democrats at least one election.
In January 2021, Duke Energy agreed to a settlement, which the company proposed, to absorb $1.1 billion worth of coal-ash pond closure and cleanup costs, in North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...
, between 2015 and 2030. The parties involved also waived all rights to challenge the “reasonableness and prudence” of Duke Energy’s coal ash management practices and costs before March 2020. Duke estimates the costs to be between $8 and $9 billion, the settlement reduces the cost on the ratepayer by 60%.
In August 2021, Indiana city officials from Bloomington, Carmel, and West Lafayette, and other lawmakers sent a letter to Duke Energy deploring its progress towards renewables and asking it to stop overcharging low-income homes for electricity.
See also
* 2005 Atlantic Power Outage
* '' Harlan County USA''—1976 Academy Award-winning documentary film covering the efforts of 180 coal miners on strike against the Duke Power Company in Harlan County, Kentucky, in 1973.
* Fixed bill Fixed bill refers to an energy pricing program in which a consumer pays a predetermined amount for their total energy consumption for a given period. The price is independent of the amount of energy the customer uses or the unit price of the energy ...
* Holiday Junction
References
External links
*
Spectra Energy
Union Gas
Transcript of Oral Arguments before the Supreme Court
Environmental Defense v. Duke Energy Corp. (05-848)
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Electric power companies of the United States
Hydroelectric power companies of the United States
Natural gas companies of the United States
Nuclear power companies of the United States
Companies based in Charlotte, North Carolina
Non-renewable resource companies established in 1904
Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange
Companies in the Dow Jones Utility Average