 |
| Duke Energy |
Duke Energy, headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, is an energy company with assets in the United States, Canada and Latin America. It is "the biggest nuclear power company in America."
Based in Charlotte, North Carolina, Duke Energy owns and operates 36,000 megawatts of base-load and peak generation in the United States, which it distributes to its 4 million customers. Duke Energy's service territory covers 47,000 square miles (120,000 km2) with 106,000 miles (171,000 km) of distribution lines. In addition, Duke Energy has more than 4,000 megawatts of electric generation in Latin America. It operates eight hydroelectric power plants in Brazil with an installed capacity of 2,307 megawatts. Almost all of Duke Energy's Midwest generation comes from coal, natural gas, or oil, while half of its Carolinas generation comes from its nuclear power plants. During 2006, Duke Energy generated 148,798,332 megawatt-hours of electrical energy.
Duke Energy Generation Services (DEGS), a subsidiary of Duke Energy, specializes in the development, ownership, and operation of various generation facilities throughout the United States. This segment of the company operates 6,600 megawatts of generation. 240 megawatts of wind generation were under construction and 1,500 additional megawatts of wind generation were in planning stages. On September 9, 2008, DEGS updated its projections for future wind power capacity. By the end of 2008, it would have over 500 MW of nameplate capacity of wind power online, and an additional 5,000 MW in development.
History
The company began in 1900 as the Catawba Power Company when Dr. Walker Gill Wylie and his brother financed the building of a hydroelectric power station at India Hook Shoals along the Catawba River. In need of additional funding to further his ambitious plan for construction of a series of hydroelectric power plants, Wylie convinced James Buchanan Duke to invest in the Southern Power Company, founded in 1905, which later became known as Duke Power.
A 1973 labor dispute between mine workers and Duke Energy was the subject of the documentary Harlan County, USA. The film documents the use of "gun thugs" to intimidate striking workers.
In 1988, Nantahala Power & Light Co., which served southwestern North Carolina, was purchased by Duke and is now operated under the Duke Power - Nantahala Area brand. Duke Power merged with PanEnergy in 1997 to form Duke Energy. The Duke Power name continued as the electric utility business of Duke Energy until the Cinergy merger.
With the purchase of Cinergy Corporation announced in 2005 and completed on April 3, 2006, Duke Energy Corporation's customer base now includes the Midwestern United States as well. The company operates nuclear power plants, coal-fired plants, conventional hydroelectric plants, natural-gas turbines to handle peak demand, and pumped hydro storage. During 2006, Duke Energy also acquired Chatham, Ontario-based Union Gas, which is regulated under the Ontario Energy Board Act (1998).
On January 3, 2007, Duke Energy spun off its gas business to form Spectra Energy. Duke Energy shareholders received 1 share of Spectra Energy for each 2 shares of Duke Energy. After the spin-off, Duke Energy now receives the majority of its revenue from its electric operations in portions of North Carolina, South Carolina, Kentucky, Ohio, and Indiana. The spinoff to Spectra also included Union Gas, which Duke Energy acquired the previous year.
On January 10, 2011, Duke Energy announced a merger with Progress Energy Inc with the Duke Energy name being retained along with the Charlotte headquarters. Duke Energy has pledged to raise $32 million for the 2012 Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, and has guaranteed a $10 million line of credit for the event.
Visit Sotokan for Daily Updated Hairstyles Collection
No comments:
Post a Comment