State regulators will take a closer look at Duke Energy’s long-term energy plans, they said Tuesday, delaying required approvals on keystone documents. The North Carolina Utilities Commission’s announcement comes after regulators in South Carolina this month rejected Duke’s plans in that state, adding more uncertainty to energy giant’s future construction plans.
NC WARN in the News
A few of the news articles citing NC WARN
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NC energy bill has one big beneficiary (and it’s not you) — News & Observer/Charlotte Observer
North Carolina House Republican lawmakers and Duke Energy’s representatives spent months in closed-door meetings hammering out an energy bill that somehow emerged, politically speaking, without any energy. Despite efforts to build up suspense about House Bill 951, the measure landed with a thud last week.
Why Duke Energy is spending $283M on retrofitting coal plants to burn natural gas — Charlotte Business Journal
Duke Energy Corp. is modifying its largest coal plants to burn natural gas for at least part of the power they produce in order to reduce coal use in the near term… Some clean-energy advocates worry the work will just extend the life of coal plants, allowing Duke to continue to recover costs for plants they say are no longer economical to operate.
Watchdog accuses Duke energy of misleading state regulators — WXII
Great TV story exposing Duke Energy on bogus data given to regulators to justify building 50 gas-fired power units. The public hearing is actually March 16.
Duke Energy gets an ‘F’ from environmental group — WXII
Critics say that Duke’s plan for the next 15 years is heading in the wrong direction. Climate and Energy Watchdog Jim Warren, who heads NC WARN calls Duke’s utility plan “Ruinous.”
New energy report could yield a win-win for climate and pocketbooks — NC Policy Watch
Op-Ed by Sally Robertson. COVID taught us a lot about living in crisis mode. The biggest lesson: Address crises early enough to avoid a complete disruption of our lives. Let’s start with the climate crisis.
We’ve fought the pandemic together. Let’s do the same with climate change. — News & Observer
Op-Ed by Drew Shindell and Jim Warren. Reducing methane emissions is crucial for limiting climate change in the near term. Doing so can provide vital benefits, including fewer people dying from air pollution and heat waves and harmed by powerful storms and wildfires. The climate crisis demands that we stop building fossil fuel infrastructure immediately.
Governor Roy Cooper Led North Carolina to Act on Climate Change. Will That Help Him Win a 2nd Term? — Inside Climate News
“The climate crisis demands that we stop building new fossil fuel infrastructure immediately,” Duke University climate scientist Drew Shindell, 40 former U.S. Environmental Protection Agency officials and leaders of the environmental group NC WARN wrote to Cooper and Duke Energy on Sept. 14.
Duke Energy Asks Regulators To Let it Charge Customers For Coal Ash Costs — WFAE
Rita Leadem with the environmental group NC Warn said many of the grid upgrades are unnecessary and that Duke should invest more in solar energy. “The smarter investment at this time would really be in the clean energy resources, backed up with battery storage, that would provide the resiliency that we need and really pave the way forward,” she said.
Environmental groups ask NC regulators to rule Duke Energy coal-to-gas plant conversions are illegal — Charlotte Business Journal
A coalition of environmental groups have petitioned N.C. regulators to rule Duke Energy and other utilities must get regulatory approval before modifying coal plants to burn natural gas. Jim Warren, executive director of the Durham-based watchdog group NC WARN, which is one of the petitioners, says it appears Duke is “spending millions on Band-Aids for coal plants instead of retiring them.”