Duke Energy 2013 Annual Report Download - page 11

2013 ANNUAL REPORT
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Adapting and growing our business:
Despite the national trend of low growth in
electricity usage, Duke Energy will continue
to grow – in part, by deploying capital
strategically to address the changing needs
of our customers, communities and industry.
New state mechanisms are facilitating
needed utility investments and growth
opportunities. Recent Indiana legislation
encourages upgrading the transmission and
distribution grid with more efficient, modern
technologies. We expect to invest between $1
billion to $2 billion in improving the Indiana
grid over the next seven years. In Florida, a
2013 regulatory agreement supports adding
necessary new generating capacity in the
next few years. Alternative forms of utility
regulation will continue to evolve to reflect
systemic changes in our industry.
We are also growing our business by forging
new partnerships with wholesale customers,
primarily municipal and cooperative systems.
We’ve been successful in signing new
contracts to supply more of their power needs.
In February 2014, we announced exclusive
discussions with the North Carolina Eastern
Municipal Power Agency (NCEMPA) to
purchase its minority interest in some of our
generating plants. If we reach an agreement
and secure the necessary approvals, we
will enter into a long-term, full-requirements
wholesale power contract with NCEMPA.
Part of our growth strategy
is building on our natural
advantage of serving
attractive markets with
growing populations. We
gained more than 50,000 new households
in our service territories in 2013. We partner
with local and state leaders to attract new
companies, jobs and capital investment to
our communities. Duke Energy helped attract
more than $2.9 billion in capital investment
last year, representing more than 13,750 jobs.
The trends reshaping the utility industry
disrupt traditional ways of doing business,
and they also create opportunities for
companies that anticipate and adjust to
change. Based on my observations, I am
confident that Duke Energy will successfully
adapt to these new realities in ways that
benefit our customers and investors.
From left to right: B. Keith Trent Executive
Vice President and Chief Operating Ofcer
– Regulated Utilities, Lee T. Mazzocchi
Senior Vice President and Chief Integration
and Innovation Ofcer, Lynn J. Good Vice
Chairman, President and Chief Executive
Ofcer, Dhiaa M. Jamil Executive Vice
President and President – Duke Energy
Nuclear, Julie S. Janson Executive Vice
President, Chief Legal Ofcer and
Corporate Secretary, Lloyd M. Yates
Executive Vice President – Regulated
Utilities, Steve K. Young Executive Vice
President and Chief Financial Ofcer,
Jennifer L. Weber Executive Vice President
and Chief Human Resources Ofcer,
Marc E. Manly Executive Vice President
and President – Commercial Businesses
A MESSAGE FROM OUR CEO
50,000 NEW
households
in 2013