New info bolsters need for NC Governor Josh Stein and the legislature to stop the climate- and rate-wrecking corporate polluter from building unneeded power plants
Why is a monopoly corporate utility allowed to recruit more and more power-hungry businesses into its territory? And why is it allowed to spend millions of customer dollars every year doing so?
Last week, Duke Energy filed a cleverly worded report to regulators about its anticipated influx of data centers to North Carolina. The filing isn’t transparent about the utility’s role in recruiting those industrial customers, but Duke has long had a well-resourced economic development department that coaxes hundreds of power-using industries into the state.
Now, as always, Duke’s eye-popping projection of massive growth in electricity usage is designed to bolster its bogus case for building unneeded power plants with customers’ dollars.
Enticing data centers to the state and offering tax breaks on their power usage runs counter to the overall interest of the people of North Carolina. Such developments are facing well-aimed backlash due to the multiple negative community impacts and creation of very few jobs.
“Duke Energy is committed to supporting economic vitality in the Carolinas by collaborating with current and prospective customers and communities to understand and plan for future energy needs,” the filing says.
Duke leaders plan to drive up power bills and keep gouging customers by adding an unprecedented $60 billion to the rate system in just the next 4 years in the Carolinas.
We appreciate Governor Stein for challenging the sales tax incentive. But he must stop the monopoly’s recruiting of new business to pad its investors’ pockets while abusing the people of North Carolina and blocking climate solutions.
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Now in its 38th year, NC WARN is building people power in the climate and energy justice movement to persuade or require Charlotte-based Duke Energy – one of the world’s largest climate polluters – to make a quick transition to renewable, affordable power generation and energy efficiency in order to avert climate tipping points and ongoing rate hikes.