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Duke Energy sets net-zero emissions target by 2050, 50% emissions cut by 2030

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Duke Energy will at least double its renewable energy portfolio by 2025 to meet its ambitious carbon emission reduction targets.
Source: Duke Energy

Duke Energy Corp. aims to achieve net-zero carbon emissions across its operations in six states by 2050, as part of a goal the company announced Sept. 17 to reduce emissions by 50% compared to 2005 baseline levels in 2030.

The company's new goal builds on its target from 2017, when Duke Energy said it would cut 40% of its emissions from 2005 levels by 2030. The utility has cut about 31% of its emissions from baseline levels to-date, according to Diane Denton, Duke Energy's vice president of state energy policy in North Carolina.

"We are making a cleaner energy future a reality for our customers and communities," Duke Energy President and CEO Lynn Good said in a statement. "A diverse mix of renewables, nuclear, natural gas, hydro and energy efficiency are all part of this vision, and we'll take advantage of economical solutions to continue that progress. In the longer-term, innovation and new technologies will be critical to a net-zero carbon future."

To reach its new goal, Duke Energy will at least double its renewable energy portfolio by 2025. Its commercial renewables business Duke Energy Renewables Inc is expected to add 3,000 MW of renewable capacity by 2023. Its regulated utilities, which are on track to have a total of 500 MW in owned renewable capacity by the end of 2019, plan to reach 1,000 MW in owned capacity by 2025.

Duke Energy's announcement follows a similar one by American Electric Power Co. Inc., which on Sept. 10 unveiled its own revised goal to slash carbon dioxide emissions 70% from 2000 levels by 2030.

Duke Energy will consider additional coal retirements across its service regions in Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio and South Carolina, Denton said in an interview with S&P Global Market Intelligence, while using natural gas to meet capacity needs created by retired coal plants and ensure reliability. In addition, the company is emphasizing the importance of continuing to utilize both Duke Energy and other utilities' current nuclear fleet and investing in new nuclear technologies, she added.

"This is not our business as usual plan, so we will need to accelerate our transition to cleaner energy," Denton said. "We also have to be sure that we're maintaining our important carbon-free resources we have today."

While the utility has specific capacity targets for renewable power, the company has not set specific amounts for new natural gas capacity or coal retirements. Instead, Duke Energy's utilities in its respective states will work with regulators, politicians and other stakeholders "to determine the right path forward for that state," Denton said.

Duke Energy also maintains the Atlantic Coast Pipeline project has a role in its progress to meet sustainability goals. Construction on the 1.5-Bcf/d natural gas pipeline, on which Duke Energy is a project partner, has been stalled due to legal and regulatory battles, including the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit's decision to void federal authorizations allowing the pipeline to cross the Appalachian National Scenic Trail and national forests.

Duke Energy executives including Good and Executive Vice President and CFO Steven Young have previously reiterated the utility's confidence in the completion of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline. Denton said natural gas is an integral part of decarbonization that gives the utility operational flexibility to add "significantly more renewables."

"There is only one interstate pipeline serving North Carolina. So more gas is needed to allow us to continue to transition away from coal and to reduce these emissions," she said. "In addition to enabling the decarbonization strategy, another important aspect of Atlantic Coast Pipeline is that we view it as a resiliency investment. It will help provide energy security for North Carolina, should there be an interruption of that single pipeline we rely on today."