North Carolina's dominant utility, Duke Energy, says it will begin negotiations early next year on a 'clean transition tariff' that would allow large corporate customers to pay for new carbon-free electricity. The commitment, made in a statement to Canary Media, goes beyond previous vague promises, but does not yet carry the force of state policy. Duke has explored the idea since at least spring 2024 with tech companies and Nucor, but never followed through.
Such a tariff matters because most large customers in the state cannot shop for electricity; they must buy from Duke. Data center demand is rising sharply, and Duke has proposed new fossil fuel plants to serve it. Clean energy advocates say letting companies procure their own clean power reduces the risk that households will be stuck paying for unneeded infrastructure. The concept is supported by Google, Meta, Microsoft, Amazon, and the Corporate Energy Buyers Association.
Last week, Duke and tech companies unveiled a separate large load tariff agreement that left out the clean transition tariff, prompting frustration from advocates. Duke has now said it will support a separate proceeding and will engage stakeholders in early 2027. Environmental groups, including the Southern Environmental Law Center and the Environmental Defense Fund, stress that state regulators must provide enforceable direction to ensure the talks produce a real option.