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Duke Energy Natural Gas Plant Plans Stir Debate

Jeremy Loeb/WCQS
A view of the Duke Energy Lake Julian coal-fired plant.

Duke Energy's plan for the Asheville area involves two natural gas plants at the current site of the Lake Julian coal-fired plant.  Not everyone is happy about it.  WCQS’s Jeremy Loeb has more.

Duke Energy’s plan to convert the coal-fired Lake Julian plant to natural gas has seen its bumps.  They initially wanted to build a large plant that would have run transmission lines through Henderson County to a backup plant in South Carolina.  That met with huge resistance from Henderson County residents.  Due to the outcry, Duke scrapped that idea, opting instead for two smaller natural gas plants at the site that wouldn’t need the backup power, therefore eliminating the need for the transmission lines.  That amended plan was seen as more favorable to many, but some environmental groups still have problems with it.  DJ Gerken is a senior attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center, which is representing several environmental groups hoping to have a voice at the table.  One of his main concerns is with the application process.

DJ Gerken: "This has all been abbreviated by an act of the General Assembly, so this is moving on a very aggressive timetable, which makes it difficult for the commission to apply its usual procedures and ask the questions with full information that it would normally would in this kind of process."

Gerken says the new project is significantly larger than the coal plant that it's replacing.    He says Duke Energy needs to provide more proof that such a large project is needed.

Gerken: "Remember, they make their money by building infrastructure and charging their ratepayers for it.  So there is a clear incentive to build the biggest, most aggressive proposal possible every single time.  That's why the commission exists and that's why this process exists.  And that's why we're so keen to participate in it, because we'd like to see them investing, in the long run, in renewable energy and energy efficiency programs to minimize the size of these kinds of fossil fuel facilities everywhere we can."

Duke Energy, for its part, says the plants will be needed to handle increased demand.  Tim Pettit is a Duke Energy spokesman.

Tim Pettit: "We have seen tremendous growth up in the greater Asheville area.  Since 1970, the peak power demand up there has more than tripled.  And current forecasts are that we'll see about a  17 percent growth in that region over the next 10 years.  So it's our obligation to serve our customers with a reliable and cost-effective supply of energy and that's what these two plants that we have proposed are all about." 

As for concerns about renewable energy, Pettit insists Duke Energy is working it into their mix.

Pettit: "Duke Energy is one of the leading utilities.  North Carolina is one of the leading states in the nation in renewable energy.  And so we're committed to that.  We're committed to it all across the state.  And in this filing that we've made with the North Carolina Utilities Commission, we've committed to seek to build up to 15 megawatts of solar and battery storage also there in that region."

Duke Energy is hoping the Utilities Commission approves their application by March.  A decision could come from the commission as early as late February.  For WCQS News, I’m Jeremy Loeb.

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