Duke Energy, which is buying Raleigh-based Progress Energy, reported second-quarter earnings that beat analysts’ expectations, Charlotte Observer staff writer Bruce Henderson reports.

The 33 cents a share in diluted earnings topped Wall Street analysts’ forecasts by 2 cents. Revenues rose to $3.5 billion, up 7 percent from the same quarter of 2010.

Profit at Duke’s largest sector, its regulated gas and electric businesses, dropped 8 percent for the quarter. Sales fell slightly in the Carolinas and Midwest, as the summer’s hot weather put less demand on air conditioning than in the even more torrid 2010. Storm damage repairs also ate into profit.

Not counting weather factors, residential sales improved slightly, commercial sales fell a little and industrial sales were flat, chief financial officer Lynn Good said. “We continue to see some volatility,” she said.

Duke also saw a boost from its international operations, including hydroelectric dams that produce power in Brazil.

As with Progress, Duke's results offer a snapshot of the broader economy, because they're tied to electricity demand from residential and industrial customers across North Carolina.

Duke Energy CEO Jim Rogers thinks the energy future looks like this: coal, nuclear, solar, wind and batteries.

Rogers laid out his vision of the future to FastCompany, the publication that caters to entrepreneurs.

Rogers noted in this week's interview that when Charlotte-based Duke completes its merger with Raleigh-based Progress Energy, the result will be the biggest electric utility in the nation and one of the country's biggest emitters of greenhouse gases.

He also said that by 2050, Duke will have to replace most of its nuclear and coal-burning power plants, and invest in next-generation technologies.

White House officials and big-name CEOs will take a whirlwind tour of the Triangle Monday morning as the region awaits the arrival of President Barack Obama.

Members of Obama's administration and Jobs Council will divide up to meet and greet at ad agency McKinney and N.C. Central in Durham, Biogen Idec's and DuPont's operations in Research Triangle Park, and N.C. State's Centennial Campus in Raleigh.

The five "listening and action" sessions are tied to hot economic topics for politicians eager to prove they're fighting to produce more jobs, including entrepreneurship, biotechnology, energy innovation, workforce training and manufacturing. They'll hear from local business leaders, such as Duke Energy CEO Jim Rogers, Elster Solutions CEO Mark Munday and Geomagic CEO Ping Fu.

The group's local visit is scheduled to kick off with a reception at American Tobacco Historic District in Durham Sunday night, and will culminate with Obama's visit to Cree, the Durham-based LED lighting company.

The nuclear crisis in Japan has spooked N.C. lawmakers from voting this year on a legislation that would make it easier for Duke Energy and Progress Energy to raise rates to pay for new nuclear reactors.

That means the earliest the N.C. General Assembly could vote on the legal change sought by electric utilities would be during next year's legislative session, said Duke Energy CEO Jim Rogers during a conference call with analysts this morning.

Mike Hager, vice chairman of the House Public Utilities Committee, said the nuclear proposal had enough support to pass until a tsunami disabled Japanese reactors in March.

Hager, a mechanical engineer who worked 16 years for Duke, said state officials should hold off on the nuclear proposal until the root causes of the Japanese crisis are analyzed.

He also said he has misgivings about advancing legislation that could add between $20 and $40 to a monthly household power bill at a time that many North Carolina counties are still racked by double-digit unemployment rates.

Duke Energy will likely be looking to buy more electric utilities after it has completed its $26 billion merger with Progress Energy.

Duke CEO Jim Rogers, who will be executive chairman of the merged company, described the corporate strategy as part of a 13-minute filmed interview with the Financial Times newspaper. Rogers made the comments during a visit to New York to promote Charlotte and the city's emerging energy cluster.

Charlotte-based Duke subsequently filed the Times' article with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as part of its ongoing disclosure of information pertinent to the pending merger, which is expected to close at the end of this year. The two North Carolina companies announced their union in January and plan to make their first regualtory filings this month.

"We'll be in a stronger position to continue the consolidation, which I think is inevitable in a very fragmented market in the U.S.," Rogers said. "As you think about how this industry has consolidated over the last 20 years, it continues."

Duke Energy CEO Jim Rogers ventured into enemy territory when he first met with his counterpart at Progress Energy to discuss a merger.

After Rogers called to suggest they talk about ways they might work together, Progress CEO Bill Johnson set up the July dinner at the Washington Duke Inn, on the campus of Duke University.

Rogers jokingly suggested during an interview with editors at The News & Observer Wednesday that Johnson had picked a site that would put him at a disadvantage.

Rogers is a University of Kentucky alumnus and a big basketball fan who still holds a grudge over the last-second shot the Blue Devils' Christian Laettner hit in a 1992 tournament game to beat UK.

"It's bad enough running a company called Duke," Rogers said, laughing.

Progress Energy CEO Bill Johnson, who will become CEO of the combined utility when Duke Energy buys Progress, will make a base annual salary of $1.1 million.

He also will be eligible for bonuses worth up to $6.7 million, and various other perks under Duke's compensation policy, including use of the corporate aircraft. The companies disclosed some details of Johnson's three-year employment agreement in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission today.

Johnson, 57, also will be reimbursed for expenses related to his relocation to Charlotte.

The top boss at Progress Energy will meet with employees on Wednesday morning in Raleigh to discuss the utility's proposed union with Duke Energy.

The meeting with Progress CEO Bill Johnson was scheduled for today, but was delayed because of the winter weather. Spokesman Mike Hughes declined to comment on where or when the meeting will happen.

On Thursday, Johnson and Duke CEO Jim Rogers will meet with workers in downtown Charlotte. That meeting is scheduled to be held from 2 to 3 p.m. at the Knight Theater in Charlotte, the companies reported in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission today.

Johnson and Rogers need support among the companies' thousands of workers, even though employees face several years of uncertainty about their future.

Duke Energy announced this morning that it will buy Progress Energy in a all-stock deal worth about $26 billion, creating the largest electric utility in the nation with 7.1 million customers.

The expanded company will keep Duke's name and corporate identity. It will remain headquartered in Charlotte, boosting that city's profile as the state's business and finance capital, but "maintain substantial operations in Raleigh," the companies said.

The deal will result in Raleigh losing a Fortune 500 corporate headquarters when Progress ceases to exist as an independent company after 102 years of continuous operation. The union is expected to bring job cuts as the companies look to save money by consolidating operations, but could result in lower rates for customers.

Progress CEO Bill Johnson will become CEO of the combined company, while Duke CEO Jim Rogers will serve as chairman. 

Duke Energy, based in Charlotte, is set to announce Monday that it is buying Raleigh-based Progress Energy, three sources have confirmed. The all-stock deal that would unite North Carolina's largest power companies and create the nation's largest electric utility with 7.1 million customers.

The companies plan to announce the merger in Charlotte tomorrow morning. Regulatory approval is expected this year. Sources confirmed the deal Sunday to The News & Observer and The Charlotte Observer.

The imminent deal was earlier reported The Wall Street Journal, New York Times and Financial Times.

According to reports, Duke would pay a "low premium" for Progress's shares, with a deal valued between $24 billion and $26 bilion, including $11.4 billion in Progress's long-term debt. Progress shares closed Friday at $44.72.