Climate 411

A New Energy Task Force for North Carolina: Putting Affordability First

By Will Scott, Southeast Climate and Clean Energy Director / Published: September 11, 2025

It’s a new dawn. It’s a new day. It’s a new energy task force in North Carolina, and EDF is honored to have a role in this state initiative to meet the challenge of rising electricity demand. If we fail to build enough electricity generation to keep up with rising demand, that will mean bill shock for NC households. Many people have opened the highest electricity bill of their life this summer, a trend that will continue if we don’t find a way to get costs under control while phasing out our coal fleet and finding the right mix of next-generation technologies.

We’re in a time of broader uncertainty, with federal policy in flux and high interest rates challenging developers and utilities who need to make investments in their growing systems.

But North Carolina has a history of innovating in power sector regulation, regardless of what is happening in Washington, DC. The Clean Smokestacks Act in 2002 helped clean up an aging coal fleet, and House Bill 951 in 2021 set power sector emission reduction targets to put the state on a path towards a cleaner, more diversified energy generation portfolio. We must set our own course and learn from other states who are experimenting with new ways to meet power demand, which is rising faster than traditional power plants like coal, gas or nuclear, and can realistically be built.

We have to expand the range of options on the table to meet a surge in demand from data centers and new industrial sources. That means tapping into batteries on people’s homes, incentivizing large facilities to reduce their usage during peak demand times and building as much of the quickest-to-market resources we can — which are primarily solar and batteries.

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When power bills go up in North Carolina, remember this vote

By Will Scott, Southeast Climate and Clean Energy Director / Published: July 31, 2025

The North Carolina General Assembly’s vote to override Governor Stein’s veto of Senate Bill 266 is a major setback for North Carolina households, clean energy progress and climate leadership. Despite warnings from economists, energy experts and everyday residents, the General Assembly chose to make law a bill that will raise customer energy costs and shift billions in risk and cost from utilities and larger commercial and industrial users onto families and small businesses — at a time when energy bills are already straining household budgets.

And there’s no mistaking where the blame for this new law and its damaging effects lies: squarely on the shoulders of the powerful utility, Duke Energy, that pushed it and the legislators who caved to Duke’s demands. As quoted in a WRAL story when the veto override vote passed both chambers, I summed it up by saying, “When your power bill goes up next year, remember this vote and the legislators who shifted risk and cost onto households.”

There’s no way around it. Senate Bill 266, which will now become law, has been a flawed approach from the start. It’s bad for customers and bad for the environment.

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North Carolina can still avoid huge amounts of emissions (and stranded carbon emitting assets) under the state’s Carbon Plan Law. Here’s how.

By Will Scott, Southeast Climate and Clean Energy Director / Published: November 4, 2024

On November 1, the North Carolina Utilities Commission issued an order in the Carbon Plan docket, almost two months ahead of schedule. It largely ratifies an agreement reached by Duke Energy and the state’s Public Staff, who are charged with protecting the state’s ratepayers. While the Commission drops the requirement for Duke Energy to model hitting the 70% carbon emission reduction by 2030 in state law, largely due to a boom in electricity demand, the utility is still required to take “all reasonable steps” to hit the target by the “earliest possible date.” Which begs the question, what is the earliest possible date? A new white paper from EDF comes to the conclusion that North Carolina can still hit the target by 2032, even with the new carbon-emitting resources moving forward under this order.

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Posted in Cities and states, Economics, Energy, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, News / Authors: / Comments are closed

North Carolina Carbon Plan: Duke’s hydrogen plan is a mirage, but there are proven clean technologies available now to meet customer need

By Will Scott, Southeast Climate and Clean Energy Director / Published: July 3, 2024

On June 17, the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) was represented by our expert witnesses at a technical conference before the NC Utilities Commission (NCUC). Each of the intervenors in the Carbon Plan/Integrated Resource Plan docket, including EDF, were given a few minutes to briefly summarize testimony filed in May. EDF’s testimony centered around the need for Duke Energy to more aggressively leverage North Carolina’s offshore wind potential — the subject of this recent blog — and the fallacy of Duke’s hydrogen plans.

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North Carolina Carbon Plan: Why Duke’s gas bet is a risk to ratepayers and how offshore wind can carry the load

By Will Scott, Southeast Climate and Clean Energy Director / Published: June 17, 2024

On May 28, the Environmental Defense Fund, along with several other parties, filed expert testimony with the North Carolina Utilities Commission (NCUC) in North Carolina’s Carbon Plan proceeding. The outcome of these regulatory proceedings, which include hearings over the summer and a Commission order by end of year, will shape over $100 billion in long-term investments proposed by Duke Energy, and ultimately largely paid for by North Carolina electricity customers. This is a huge decision point for the state’s energy future, as I described in a recent op-ed published by NC Newsline.

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Posted in Cities and states, Economics, Energy, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Policy / Comments are closed

Duke Energy’s proposed investment in fossil fuels will leave customers with higher bills and more pollution

By Will Scott, Southeast Climate and Clean Energy Director / Published: December 12, 2023

In the last few years, North Carolinians have seen eye-popping electricity bills. Bill increase after bill increase has compounded, resulting in 20+ percent higher monthly bills for most ratepayers in our state. The main driver? The volatile cost of natural gas, which accounts for a larger and larger portion of the energy mix that North Carolinians depend on.

And yet, instead of curbing use of a risk-intensive fuel source that has had such a detrimental effect on customers, Duke Energy is proposing a huge investment to build even more gas power plants. Why? State policy guarantees Duke a profitable return on investment for its spending on infrastructure like power plants. The more costly the investment, the higher the return for the company and its shareholders.

There’s no free market for electricity in North Carolina. With no meaningful competitor to provide customers the option to choose a different energy provider, Duke dominates the market and the company’s expensive investment plans are entirely in line with what should be expected from a profit-seeking monopoly utility taking advantage of a captive customer-base.

North Carolinians deserve the facts about Duke’s decisions, how it impacts their lives and how their leaders can protect them. Here’s what you should know: 

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