Duke Energy 2012 Annual Report Download - page 11

Readiness for the road ahead
The history of Duke Energy includes more than
a century of resilience and adaptation – through
national economic booms and busts, energy
crises, technological innovations, volatile fuel
prices and a shifting landscape of government
policies and regulations.
Greater transformation lies ahead for our company
and our industry. Current drivers of change include
the shale gas revolution, emerging technologies
and anemic growth in energy usage. Also, our
nation needs to address global climate change in
a more comprehensive way.
Our company must anticipate and adapt to this fluid
business context. We have to change our cost structure
and our regulatory model to reflect the new energy
realities. It won’t be easy. But our scale, diversity
and flexibility will help us shape the way forward.
Our sustainability journey at Duke Energy is a
critical part of this readiness for the future. We’re
doing business in a way that’s good for people,
the planet and profits. In 2012, Duke Energy was
named to the Dow Jones Sustainability Index for
North America for the seventh consecutive year.
You can read about our sustainability initiatives in
our 2012 Sustainability Report, available in April at
duke-energy.com.
As part of creating a more sustainable future, we
are pursuing innovative ways to promote energy
efficiency. One example is Envision Charlotte – a
public/private partnership to reduce energy usage,
water and waste in Charlotte’s urban core by 20
percent in five years.
We are also evaluating advanced technologies from
energy storage for wind farms to solar charging
stations for electric vehicles.
In December 2012 we completed North America’s
largest battery storage project at a wind farm. This
36-megawatt system in Texas will help us assess
the potential for broader use of energy storage,
which could be an industry game changer.
More balanced fuel mix
3%
35%
38% 24%
Projected 2015
Our fuel mix is becoming much more balanced. By 2015,
we anticipate a regulated eet using much less coal and
much more cleaner-burning natural gas. And this doesn’t
even count the growing portfolio of wind and solar generation
in our commercial businesses.
Coal Nuclear Natural Gas Oil Hydro
Actual 2005
3%
1%
55% 36%
5%
2005 data as if Duke Energy and Progress Energy were already merged; 2015 data
assume Crystal River 1-2 retirement (no denitive decision yet); no replacement power
Chairman’s Letter to Stakeholders
9