Duke Energy Will Raise Rates In 2010

Duke Energy is raising rates starting on New Year’s Day.

The North Carolina Utilities Commission approved an 8 percent rate hike over the next two years.

That means the average household’s bill will go up about $4 a month in 2010 and about $7 a month in 2011.

Some customers are concerned about the rate raise.

“[It] depends on how work [is] going for me, because right now, I’m just taking inside jobs, doing odds and ends, so I don’t have steady work,” Duke Energy customer Germelle Howard said. “So $4 could make a big difference to me.”

The company said it needs the extra money to keep up with its uptown projects.