DURHAM, North Carolina — North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein (D) said Wednesday he will help push Duke Energy to lower a proposed rate increase, even after the state’s largest electric utility reduced its request to regulators twice in recent months.
Stein told POLITICO that Attorney General Jeff Jackson (D) is planning to challenge the utility’s recent proposed increase of 9.5 percent, which Duke brokered in July with energy advocacy groups, corporations such as Microsoft and the NC Public Staff, which represents ratepayers.
The utility originally proposed an 18 percent hike over two years to fortify its electric grid against increasingly severe weather and meet rising demand from data centers, manufacturing and population growth. Stein said Duke’s latest proposal was still too high.
“Because we challenged the original rate, as did the attorney general, as did the public staff, it’s going to mean about 150 bucks per household,” Stein said at an event in Durham on Wednesday afternoon. “I still think it’s too high for families. The attorney general is going to likely appeal the current rate, and I will be supportive of his efforts.”
