Duke Energy 2010 Annual Report Download - page 12

LETTER TO STAKEHOLDERS (CONTINUED)
LEARNING FROM CHALLENGES
While we are proud of our employees’ stellar safety performance, we must improve
contractor safety. Several contractors working for Duke Energy lost their lives during 2010,
and this is unacceptable to us. We’ve formed a leadership task force that is implementing
new procedures to safeguard our contractors on the job. To underscore the importance of
a fatality-free workplace for both employees and contractors, rigorous safety measures are
a part of our annual employee incentive compensation program.
Just as we are committed to ensuring the safety of employees and contractors, we are
also committed to earning the trust of our communities. In 2010, that trust was tested
in Indiana with controversy over the hiring of a regulatory attorney. When the issue first
emerged, we immediately launched an internal investigation and have cooperated fully with
external investigations. As we learned more, we took swift, decisive and appropriate policy
and personnel actions. While the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission’s investigation
found no improprieties in rulings related to our Edwardsport project under construction
in that state, we recognize the need to rebuild our stakeholders’ trust.
INVESTING IN TECHNOLOGY
We face a different kind of challenge when we lay the groundwork for a future focused on
energy efficiency and environmental stewardship. The past 100 years was about building
the infrastructure to make electricity accessible to everyone. Today, our mission is to deliver
affordable, reliable energy in a way that’s increasingly clean. In response, we are investing
in digital energy technologies that have the potential to transform our industry — the way
we generate energy, the way we deliver it and the way our customers use it.
I’ve often said that Duke Energy is a technology company disguised as a utility. New
nuclear, advanced coal, and renewable energy resources, all seamlessly integrated into a
digital grid, will create the foundation for a future that continues to bring reliable, affordable
and cleaner energy to all our customers.
Grid Modernization
Our power grid delivers electricity over more than 170,000 miles of lines and scores of
substations and related equipment. It uses technology that has changed little since the days
of Thomas Edison. In 2009, we began a $1 billion upgrade to move from an analog system
to an advanced digital grid. Sometimes
called “smart grid,” today’s modernization
efforts bring 21st century technology to
the 20th century power grid.
We began by installing two-way
communication devices on parts of our
distribution system. These devices can
help identify outages, enabling us to
respond more quickly to resolve problems.
They can also help us monitor potential
irregularities and prevent future outages,
improving the grid’s reliability. Digital
meters at our customers’ homes and
businesses permit remote meter reading
and decreased on-site visits, resulting in
greater efficiencies.
A digital meter is just
one part of a smart-grid
system. With digital meters
and energy management
programs, customers
benefit from more efficient
operations as well as more
information to help them
manage their energy use
and costs.
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DUKE ENERGY CORPORATION / 2010 ANNUAL REPORT