CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Some customers were upset to hear Duke Energy’s news Friday.
The company confirmed to Channel 9 it plans to ask the Utilities Commission to raise rates for 2 million Duke Energy Carolinas customers sometime in the fourth quarter.
That includes customers in the Charlotte area.
“No one wants to pay more for their power,” Belmont resident Bill Collins said
“Asking us to help pay for the mess you created is wrong,” Belmont resident Amy Brown said.
On Thursday, the company asked to raise rates for Duke Energy Progress customers in central and eastern North Carolina by about 15 percent.
They said the increase would help pay for projects like: safely closing ash basins across the state, modernizing power plants and generating cleaner electricity.
On Friday, Channel 9 asked the company how much more Charlotte area customers could pay.
“It’s hard to speculate on what the exact numbers are going be,” Duke Energy spokesperson Paige Layne said. “We know the request will be similar because they include similar investments.”
The company said Duke Energy Carolinas customers could pay more or less than the 15 percent depending on the projects to be funded in the area. Some customers said they were bracing for the worst.
“I have a strong feeling they'll ask for the same figure for us, and I think that they're going to try to get as much as they can,” Collins said.
The company said if that 15 percent increase is approved, the average customer would pay about $18 more per month.
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