Duke Energy News

U.S. offshore oil producers on Tuesday were keeping a wary eye on Hurricane Ian's track as the powerful storm shut-in at least 480,000 barrels of oil production as it heads toward Florida.The hurricane entered the U.S. Gulf of Mexico on Tuesday and is forecast to become a dangerous, Category 4 storm over the warm waters of the Gulf, according to National Hurricane Center (NHC) forecaster Eric Blake.Ian weakened after crossing Cuba and was packing winds of 115 miles per hour (185 km per hour), the NHC said.

After the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced TotalEnergies and Duke Energy Corp as the winners of two offshore wind leases in federal waters off the coast of North and South Carolina on Wednesday, the confirmation came Friday from TotalEnergies, too.TotalEnergies has won the maritime lease area OCS-A 0545 as part of the Carolina Long Bay auction. This bid for the development of an offshore wind farm in the Carolina Long Bay area offshore North Carolina was won for a consideration of US$ 160 million by TotalEnergies.Located 20 nautical miles (37 kilometers) from the coast…

On Wednesday, French oil & gas major TotalEnergies and U.S. utility Duke Energy were declared provisional winners of the two lease areas auctioned by BOEM, the federal agency in charge of offshore wind area leasing and project permitting. Whilst the results can be seen as a positive indicator of the health of U.S. offshore wind market in the context of pre-2022 auction activity, the winning bidders secured development rights at considerably lower rates than those seen in the recent New York Bight auctions.The comparatively shallow water sites cover 110…

France energy giant TotalEnergies and U.S. power company Duke Energy Corp were the winners of two offshore wind leases in federal waters off the coast of North and South Carolina on Wednesday, the Interior Department said in a statement.Winning bids amounted to $315 million, with Duke paying $155 million and TotalEnergies paying $160 million.The auction total was far less than the $4.37 billion in high bids generated at a February wind auction off the coast of New York and New…

The Biden administration on Wednesday will hold a wind energy auction for two areas off the coast of North and South Carolina, its second such offering this year.The sale is part of the government's broad push to put wind turbines in federal waters along every U.S. coastline and comes on the heels of a record February wind auction off the coast of New York and New Jersey that drew $4.37 billion in high bids.U.S. President Joe Biden has said the nascent offshore wind industry will create good-paying jobs while creating the carbon-free electricity needed to combat climate change.

The MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI) launched a new research consortium—the Future Energy Systems Center—to address the climate crisis and the role energy systems can play in solving it. Randall Field, Executive Director, discusses current research and the challenges ahead for the maritime sector.The reputation of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is such that it can take mammoth issues — such as driving the world to net zero — head-on, and suddenly make the impossible…

Oklahoma-based Matrix Service Company has secured an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for the Piedmont Natural Gas LNG  facility in North Carolina.The contract was awarded to Matrix’s subsidiary, Matrix Service Inc, to build its liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility in Robeson County, North Carolina.The facility will help Piedmont Natural Gas continue providing customers with a reliable supply of natural gas during peak usage days, when extremely low temperatures create a higher-than-normal demand for natural gas.The 1 billion-cubic-foot (Bcf) storage facility will cover approximately 60 acres of a 685- acre piece of Piedmont-owned property.

Duke Energy Corp started to shut the Brunswick nuclear power plant in North Carolina ahead of Hurricane Florence, which is expected to strike the coast near the plant on Friday.Florence is currently a Category 2 storm with maximum sustained winds of 110 miles per hour (177 kph), according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC). On its current track, the storm will hit the coast on Friday with maximum sustained winds of about 105 mph.Duke spokeswoman Mary Kathryn Green said the company was following its procedures and is shutting Unit 1 now and would start shutting Unit 2 at the 1,870-megawatt plant later today. One megawatt can power about 1,000 U.S.

Duke Energy Indiana has selected a 140-acre parcel of land inside the Port of Indiana-Jeffersonville in Clark County for the utility's 2015 Site Readiness Program. A key component of Duke Energy's economic development model, the Site Readiness Program identifies, evaluates and improves sites in the company's service territory for potential industrial development. "We see distinct potential for this site to attract businesses that can bring economic growth to this area," said Lisa Huber, Duke Energy Indiana community relations manager for Clark County. As part of Duke Energy's evaluation of the Clark County property, site-selection consultant McCallum Sweeney Consulting will conduct a comprehensive assessment.

Duke Energy Corp has agreed to pay a fine of about $102 million for environmental violations related to a power plant's coal ash spill into a North Carolina river last year and the company's management of coal ash basins in the state. Duke set aside $100 million in the fourth quarter in anticipation of the settlement, the company said in an earnings statement. The U.S. Department of Justice fined the company for five Clean Water Act violations at its Dan River and Riverbend steam stations and four Clean Water Act violations at the company's H.F. Lee Steam, Cape Fear and Asheville electricity-generating plants, according to a company statement on Friday.

Energy companies have become a larger presence in the US high-yield bond market this year, relying on debt to fund capex as they expand exploration and production activity, but months of heavy issuance and weaker oil prices are taking their toll. Some recent bond deals have struggled to get across the line, only to end up still getting punished in secondary. Apollo's US$1.1bn LBO bond for Jupiter Resources, for example, has traded as low as 89 - even after coming to market last month with a five-point discount. "A lot of high-yield energy companies, particularly those developing shale plays, are spending more money than they are taking in," Patrick Faul, head of research at Calvert Investments, told IFR.

U.S. coal-burning power utilities are being forced to turn to barges and more expensive trucks to move coal, desperate to shore up stockpiles left dangerously low by the widespread bottlenecks on rail networks. The shift in how coal is being delivered to some power plants from mining regions such as Illinois Basin and comes amid persistent railroad delays that began during last year's severe North American winter. The delays have been perpetuated also by a surge in rail deliveries of crude oil and grain…

A 15-mile section of the Ohio River was reopened for limited traffic on Wednesday as clean-up of a 5,000-gallon fuel oil spill continued, the U.S. Coast Guard said on Wednesday. The Coast Guard closed a stretch of the river between Cincinnati, Ohio and Dayton, Kentucky on Tuesday after a spill during a "routine transfer of fuel oil" at a 60-year-old power plant owned by Duke Energy, 20 miles east of Cincinnati. "The river is open. Vessels can transit as long as they call the Coast Guard command center to get permission first," said Lt. Kate Cameron of the U.S. Coast Guard. Restrictions on traffic will continue as the clean-up progresses, the Coast Guard said, without giving a timeline.

The U.S. Coast Guard closed a 15-mile stretch of the Ohio River on Tuesday after at least five thousand gallons of fuel oil spilled from a 60-year-old power plant owned by Duke Energy near Cincinnati, Ohio. The spill occurred late on Monday during a "routine transfer of fuel oil" at the W.C. Beckjord plant in New Richmond, Duke said. It began at 11:15 p.m. and was stopped 15 minutes later. It was not clear if the oil had been contained or if there was any impact on wildlife or drinking water. "We are still assessing the situation and any effects that may occur," a spokeswoman for the company said on Tuesday. Intake for drinking water has been closed on the river, she said.

Duke Energy Corp has agreed to find and remove coal ash that a retired North Carolina power plant spilled into the Dan River, which provides drinking water to two towns in nearby Virginia, U.S. environmental regulators said on Thursday. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will oversee the cleanup, and Duke will reimburse EPA for current and future costs, a statement issued by the EPA said. On Feb. 2, a 48-inch (122-cm) stormwater pipe beneath a coal ash pond ruptured at the retired Eden coal plant and released between 24 million and 27 million gallons (91 million to 102 million liters) of wastewater and as many as 39,000 tons of coal combustion residue into the Dan river that supplies drinking water to two towns in Virginia.

Auto-Maskin, the makers of the Marine Pro range of diesel engine controllers, announced the opening of a new regional office in Houston, Texas to support the continued expansion in the marine and oil and gas sectors in North America. The facility in Houston will be staffed by sales, engineering, application, aftermarket and commissioning resources, backed up by the HQ in Norway. With a comprehensive local inventory of parts for both new project sales or replacement parts for the extensive equipment population already in North America, the team of Auto-Maskin employee’s will be able to provide extensive services to both new and old customers.

Natural gas pipelines and power utilities across the United States struggled for several weeks to keep lights on and homes warm through the coldest winter in decades, but it may take many months for the cost and the fallout of the so-called "polar vortex" to work through the energy chain. As sub-freezing temperatures spread in January and February, spot natural gas prices spiked at many gas delivery points in the Midwest, Northeast and New York, pushing wholesale power prices above $100 per megawatt-hour for days at a time. Customers will soon receive gas and electric bills, reflecting the higher cost of gas in January. In unregulated power markets, January bills will present a "double whammy," said Nick Akins, chief executive of American Electric Power Co, one of the largest U.S.

Inland and coastal giant christens ATB duo Jason E. Duttinger and Winna Wilson in an October New Orleans ceremony. The crew of the Jason E. Duttinger took a break from hauling coal between Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, and Florida on Oct. 30 as Kirby Corp. of Houston christened the articulated tug-and-barge unit in New Orleans at the dock of the Hilton Riverside Hotel. Both units were named in honor of two special individuals. Jason Duttinger was a senior transportation specialist at North Carolina-based Duke Energy when he died of cancer in 2011.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) issued a notice stating that it intends to prepare a draft environmental impact statement for the proposed Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC Offshore Wind Demonstration Project for construction of up to three power generating wind turbines within Pamlico Sound, Dare County, North Carolina. A public scoping meeting will be held in Manteo, North Carolina on March 18. 75 Fed. Reg. 8047 (February 23, 2010). (Source: Bryant’s Maritime News)

Stolt Offshore S.A. announced that following suspension of the arbitration proceedings that it had previously initiated, an out of court settlement of all outstanding claims relating to the Duke Energy/AGT Hubline project in the USA had been reached. The cash related to this claim has now been received. Tom Ehret, Chief Executive Officer of Stolt Offshore, said, "The settlement of the Hubline claim, which is in line with provisions recorded at year end and the previously announced settlement of claims on the OGGS and Burullus projects, underscores our continued effort to resolve all disputes associated with the legacy contracts. Cash receipts in relation to outstanding claims in the last three months are now in excess of $100 million."

Sean T. Connaughton signed Excelerate Energy’s Northeast Gateway Energy Bridge Deepwater Port license today in Washington DC. Excelerate will build the Northeast Gateway deepwater port approximately 18 miles east of Boston, Massachusetts. Spectra Energy, formerly Duke Energy, will build a 16-mile subsea pipeline from its existing HubLine to the deepwater port site to transfer natural gas from the vessels into New England’s gas pipeline network. Excelerate Energy will construct and own the deepwater port, which will be operated by Skaugen Offshore and will accommodate Excelerate’s proprietary Energy Bridge Regasification Vessel (EBRV) fleet operated by Exmar NV. The port’s infrastructure will feature two submerged turret loading buoys supplied by Advanced Production and Loading.

Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) purchased two vessels owned by Duke Energy to transport gas from the Bonny LNG plant. The company said it had long-term chartered the ships in 1995 for 22.5 years with provisions for an extension or outright purchase within the period 2001 and 2006. The company is exercising the right to buy the vessels outright one year ahead of schedule. The $3.8 billion Bonny plant in southeast Nigeria began LNG production in October.