Dive Summary:
- The North Carolina Utilities Commission is expected to approve the settlement that will end its investigation into whether Duke Energy misled officials during its merge with Progress Energy.
- If endorsed, the settlement would erase any risk of reversal or alteration to the deal that made Duke the country's largest electric utility; attorneys for the utilities commission will argue on Monday that the settlement is in the public's best interest.
- The linchpins of the settlement are the retirement of CEO Jim Rogers as well as Duke's pledges to produce $30 million for low-income assistance and the reshuffling of management to advance former Progress executives.
From the article:
Analysts hailed the settlement negotiated by the company as good for Charlotte-based Duke Energy, the utilities commission's staff, and its division responsible for protecting consumers. Investors bid shares in the company 2.3 percent higher Friday to $63.85; the stock price had been down more than 8 percent since the day before the deal closed.
But energy watchdog Jim Warren called the settlement deal a sell-out by regulators. The deal "represents a huge gift to Duke Energy," which Warren said "wields an embarrassing level of influence over various levels of our state government." ...