Local

Duke Energy posts loss on coal fleet

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Duke Energy says it lost $97 million in the first quarter because it reduced the value of a fleet of coal-fired power plants in the Midwest that it is trying to sell.

The company's regulated utility operations, however, performed better than expected because of higher rates and stronger demand for power.

Duke lost 14 cents per share on revenue of $6.62 billion in the first three months of the year. Last year, the company earned $634 million, or 89 cents per share, on revenue of $5.9 billion.

Adjusted to remove the $1.4 billion write-down of the coal plants, Duke earned $1.17 per share. That's up from last year's adjusted $1.02 per share and higher than the $1.12 expected by analysts surveyed by FactSet, on average.