Duke Energy will pull the plug on its plan to build up to three wind turbines in North Carolina’s Pamlico Sound, citing high costs, the Charlotte Observer's Bruce Henderson reports.
Duke and UNC Chapel Hill signed a contract in September to work together in the demonstration project, which would evaluate the potential of wind energy and its environmental impacts on the sound.
Duke said it will refocus its work on larger-scale wind projects in offshore waters. High initial costs make a larger project more economically viable than a smaller one, Duke said.
It would cost $88 million to install the first turbine in Pamlico Sound, the company said. The need for shallow-water construction techniques and a growing potential for disturbing underwater vegetation would also complicate the project, Duke said.
“The cost of the project simply exceeds the benefits our customers would receive if we were to continue,” said Paul Newton, Duke’s senior vice president of strategy for its regulated businesses.
Read the full Charlotte Observer story here.
Assistant Business Editor Alan M. Wolf joined the N&O in 1999 covering the business of health care. He became an editor in 2001, and helps oversee the paper's daily business coverage and Sunday Work&Money section. He lives in Clayton with his wife and two children. Reach him at 919-829-4572 or