Tag: Duke Energy

The Governor from Duke Energy?

February 13, 2013 at 1:39 pmCategory:Uncategorized

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Pat McCrory 2Duke EnergyBack in the mid-to-late 20th Century, a powerful U.S. Senator from the state of Washington with a talent for winning defense contracts for his home state was famoulsy known by the moniker “the senator from Boeing.”

Today in North Carolina, it looks more and more as if the appropriate nickname for Pat McCrory may well be ”the Governor from Duke Energy.” As Sue Sturgis reports in a new article at Facing South entitled ”Will Gov. McCrory help his friend Duke Energy capture the N.C. Utility Commission?” the web of connections between Guv and his longtime employer is thick and tangled and getting more troubling all the time.

“In addition to having received generous campaign contributions from Duke Energy Read More…

Duke Energy’s two-faced stance on renewables

January 16, 2013 at 1:07 pmCategory:Uncategorized

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Greenpeace investigator Connor Gibson has a post worth checking out at the Greenpeace blog, The Witness . It’s about Duke Energy’s amazingly two-faced stance on North Carolina’s renewable energy law. As Gibson reports:

“Corporate polluters are taking aim this year at states with renewable energy laws, starting with an attack on North Carolina’s clean energy economy by a corporate front group known as ALEC with support from Duke Energy, ExxonMobil, and Koch Industries.

North Carolina state Representative Mike Hager says he is confident that he has the votes needed to weaken or undo his state’s clean energy requirements during his second term. Read More…

Weak Conditions Offered on Duke-Progress Merger

November 30, 2012 at 9:05 amCategory:Uncategorized

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The closed-door decision by the NC Utilities Commission (NCUC) and the Public Staff to end its investigation into the Duke-Progress merger in exchange for a handful of restrained conditions is another missed opportunity by state regulators to protect NC consumers.

The Commission must vote on the proposal on Monday which includes conditions such as shuffling of staff and board members, concretizing Jim Rogers’ already planned 2013 retirement and throwing a few bones to consumers and low-income customers. It’s mind-boggling to think how little has come from the merger investigation. Read More…

Conservatives announce new sea-level rise response

November 28, 2012 at 4:43 pmCategory:Uncategorized

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RALEIGH – Bowing to new and overwhelming evidence from the scientific community and the powerful impacts of recent catastrophic weather events, North Carolina conservative political leaders announced today that they are willing to accept the reality of sea-level rise, while at the same time proposing a plan to deal with it.

“It does appear  that some coastal tidal patterns have started to shift slightly,” said State Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger. “And regardless of whether this is the result of direct intervention by the Almighty or, as I believe, over-regulation of offshore drilling which has prevented ocean floors from subsiding to their appropriate levels, it does appear it’s time to act.”

Berger went on to say that he and colleague House Speaker Thom Tillis will introduce legislation during the 2013 session of the General Assembly to be entitled the “Personal Water-Level Mitigation Choice and Responsibility Act.” Under the multi-faceted proposal, individual taxpayers would, among other things, be able to establish tax-free savings accounts in which they would be able to shelter income for future use in dealing with coastal storms and rising seas. Read More…

Documents indicate Duke hid info from Utilities Commission

November 27, 2012 at 12:03 pmCategory:Uncategorized

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The following was released this morning by the good people at NC WARN:

Internal Document Indicates Duke Energy Hid Damning News on Broken Nuclear Plant before Merger with Progress Energy was Approved
Johnson memo to his board members strongly suggests Duke misled regulators in various states; NC WARN says this bolsters legal case to reopen merger hearings

Durham, NC – An April memo from ousted CEO Bill Johnson appears to confirm long-running concerns by a watchdog group that Duke Energy hid vital information from regulators in several states prior to the July closing of the utility’s controversial takeover of Progress Energy. NC WARN today filed the document with the NC Utilities Commission in support of the group’s case that merger hearings must be reopened to determine if billions of dollars in hidden costs offset the very savings to the public that are required of such a utility merger.

Read the entire release by clicking here.