In early October, Duke Energy presented the update of its Carbon Plan andthe 2025 Integrated Resource Plan, mandated by HB 951, passed by the General Assembly in 2021.
Duke Energy must reduce your carbon emissions by 70% by 2030 and completely eliminate it by 2050. The company must achieve these goals in the most cost-effective way possible.
More on HB 951
While the law's primary objective is focused on reducing carbon emissions, it also has other goals related to the transition to clean energy and the modernization of regulations.
| Objective | What does HB 951 do? |
| Removing coal at low cost | Section 1 of HB 951 requires the “securitization of 50% of the remaining balance of subcritical coal plant retirements.” This allows Duke Energy to close carbon-based plants without experiencing a sudden increase in customer rates when they shut down early. |
| Grow clean energy | Section 2(c) establishes the ownership split for new solar and solar-plus-storage generation: 45% independent power producers (IPPs) and 55% utility-owned. |
| Modernize regulation | Section 4 grants Duke Energy Performance Based Regulation (PBR) authority. This allows Duke to earn bonuses for meeting public interest goals (energy efficiency, low-income programs, etc.) rather than just for building new infrastructure. |
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Every two years, Duke Energy must review its Carbon Plan and Integrated Resource Plan. To do so, the organization submits proposed plans to assist the North Carolina Public Service Commission in developing official plans.
Duke Energy's preferred energy plan for this year excludes both offshore and onshore wind power from its projections through 2040.
According to a press release from the Southeastern Wind Coalition (SEWC), the decision raises questions about long-term energy diversity and the state's role in advancing wind energy development.
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This, ¿ what does it mean?
Katharine Kollins, president of SEWC, said in a press release that the lack of a balanced energy portfolio that includes wind energy puts the Carolinas' energy and economic future at risk.
“By delaying the deployment of scalable, cost-competitive resources like wind power, we will find ourselves overly reliant on fuel sources prone to price fluctuations,” Kollins explained. “Ultimately, those impacts fall on the consumer.”
According to clean energy groups involved with the North Carolina Public Service Commission, Duke Energy's plan also raises serious questions about whether sufficiently decisive steps are being taken to comply with HB 951.
Jake Duncan, Southeast Regulatory Director at Vote Solar, said in the Press release issued by the Southern Environmental Law Center that Duke's efforts to build new large-scale methane gas plants and delay coal-fired power plants will result in higher costs for families and pollution in local communities.
“This is the third Carbon Plan that hasn’t lived up to expectations,” Duncan said.
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