The North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association (NCSEA) has requested that Duke Energy be required to submit annual research spending reports for its compliance with the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Portfolio Standard. NCSEA filed a post-hearing brief on Monday, July 23 with the North Carolina Utilities Commission (NCUC).

NCSEA is primarily requesting that the Commission:

• Give the public a better understanding of how the research spending is benefitting them; and
• Acknowledge that cross-subsidies are fairly common in utilities regulation and should not be viewed as a negative — especially, when they are incorporated into rates to advance policies that serve the public interest.

The 5^th annual North Carolina Clean Energy Industry Census is underway – has your organization participated yet? 

Company responses and information provide the critical insight into the affect clean energy has in North Carolina, and also help ensure that decision makers are aware of the unique business challenges and dynamics North Carolina clean energy companies face. 

If your company has not already participated please either login to the census and complete it online or download the census and fax or email it to NCSEA at (919) 832-6967 or Census@energync.org.

If you would like to check who represents your company for the census, or do not know your online login ID and password please contact NCSEA directly at Census@energync.org. 

If you are an energy consumer and would like to recommend a company for inclusion in the Census based on clean energy services they have provided you in the past please notify NCSEA and we would be happy to include them if they are not already participating.

Members of the North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association's market intelligence team were featured in a national trade magazine.

NCSEA staffers Paul Quinlan, Rich Crowley and Miriam Makhyoun presented their 2012 "Levelized Cost of Solar Photovoltaics in North Carolina" study in Solar Industry Magazine. The article outlines the findings of the in-depth study. Click here to read the article.

Duke Energy has withdrawn a proposal to spend about $13 million in shareholder money on a one-year pilot program that would have given a 6-percent rate cut to large commercial and manufacturing customers in North Carolina.

The company on Tuesday, July 19 filed with the North Carolina Utilities Commission to withdraw the pilot project. In the filing, Duke said it would continue to evaluate the Economic Recovery Rider "along with other ways to help customers manage their energy costs."

The Charlotte Business Journal has more about the pilot program here.

The NC Utilities Commission ended three days of hearings on Friday, July 20 but said they plan to continue their investigation into the Duke Energy Progess Energy Merger.

The NC Utilities Commission had called more Duke Energy and Progress Energy officials for questioning in the merger proceedings. On Thursday, July 13, the Commission ordered William D. Johnson and the four board members to testify on July 19 and 20. Among those called to testify are two Duke directors — Ann Maynard Gray and Michael Browning — and two former Progress directors, E. Marie McKee and James Hyler Jr.

Johnson, the former head of Progress Energy, had been to tapped to lead the combined Duke Energy but Duke's board of directors removed from him the top spot after the $18 billion merger had been approved. He was replaced by James E. Rogers, the Duke chief executive, who answered questions before the Commission on Tuesday, July 10.

Below are links to news stories on the proceedings.

WASHINGTON POST: North Carolina utilities regulators said Friday they will continue their investigation into whether they were intentionally misled by executives and directors assembling the country’s largest electric company.

NEW YORK TIMES: After four hours of testimony earlier this week about the dramatic boardroom coup at Duke Energy just hours after completing a $32 billion merger with Progress Energy, the head of North Carolina’s utilities commission hinted that there would be more hearings to come.

NEWS & OBSERVER: Media organizations on Thursday renewed their demand that the N.C. Utilities Commission release agreements Duke Energy and Progress Energy made with local power providers prior to a recent merger that created the largest utility company in the nation.

DURHAM, N.C. — Semprius, developer of the world’s most efficient solar module, is planning to open its first manufacturing facility in Henderson, NC in the next three months. The company will scale up manufacturing over the coming months to 30 megawatts by the end 2013, creating many technical jobs that are expected to be sourced locally. 

Semprius builds a high-concentration photovoltaic (HCPV) module using the world’s smallest solar cells (600 microns — about the size of a pencil tip) combined with unique optics and state-of-the-art manufacturing to deliver cost-competitive solar-generated electricity. To be competitive with other forms of energy, Semprius is working to decrease the levelized cost of energy (LCOE) to under $0.10/kWh in sunny regions.

North Carolina is leading the Southeast in the clean energy economy and our state's valuable sustainable energy businesses, local community leaders and organizations, educational institutions, and others are starting new projects everyday to make us a national leader.

Below are just a few of the recent major announcements and innovations from across our state. Click on each hyperlink below to read more about each project.

ENERGY EFFICIENCY
Hoke County is building an energy efficient middle school through a public-private partnership.

SOLAR
solar trees are helping the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians save money and energy.

WIND
Wind power faces taxing headwind.

Leaders from the University of North Carolina system and several private universities are meeting this week at Appalachian State University to work toward carbon neutrality by 2050 and reduce the UNC system's $226 million energy bill. 

The three-day Appalachian Energy Summit, hosted by Appalachian in partnership with Rocky Mountain Institute, convenes representatives from all 17 campuses in the UNC system, including the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, plus five private colleges: Catawba College, Davidson College, Duke University, Warren Wilson College and Wake Forest University.

Since 2008, more than 1,000 different North Carolina companies with activities in clean energy have participated in the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Industries Census, a nationally-recognized effort. By sharing their industry insight and expertise, companies help clean energy stakeholders better understand the affect and dynamics of the North Carolina clean energy sector. 

Starting this week through the end of August, the NC Sustainable Energy Association (NCSEA) will be contacting companies by email and phone to participate in the 2012 Census.

In its annual fuel charge adjustment proceeding, Duke Energy is seeking approval from the NC Utilities Commission to pass its fuel and fuel-related costs on to its customers.

The North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association (NCSEA) has asked the NC Utilities Commission to encourage Duke Energy to develop and implement a natural gas hedging strategy in the next year. NCSEA filed a post-hearing brief on July 3.