Vote Solar and the Southern Environmental Law Center filed expert testimony with the North Carolina Utilities Commission regarding the Duke Energy Carbon Plan and Integrated Resource Plan. The filing argues that the utility’s proposal to build new natural gas plants ignores lower-cost distributed energy resources.
The utility’s current roadmap calls for significant investments in methane gas and the continued operation of coal units to meet rising industrial demand. Duke Energy stated the fossil fuel additions are necessary to maintain grid reliability amid rapid load growth.
Testimony from Vote Solar indicates that Duke’s modeling software failed to account for 400 MW of behind-the-meter (BTM) battery storage. These customer-sited resources can be aggregated into virtual power plants to provide capacity during periods of high demand.
The filing found that solar paired with storage can reduce peak demand by more than 80%. Jake Duncan, Southeast senior regulatory director at Vote Solar, said the utility’s own modeling tools select customer-owned batteries as a top cost-saving measure when the technology is included in the options.
“Duke’s plan leaves significant clean energy capacity on the table while exposing ratepayers to the price volatility of fossil fuels,” said Duncan.
An alternative portfolio focused on solar, wind, and storage could save North Carolina customers up to $8 billion through 2035. The advocates argue that localized clean energy reduces the need for expensive transmission upgrades and new peaking plants.
The commission scheduled an expert witness hearing on the resource plan for July 1, 2026. The proceedings will be available to stream on the North Carolina Utilities Commission YouTube channel. A final order on the state’s energy roadmap is expected by the end of the year.
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