North Carolina governor signs storm securitization bill into law
A bill signed into law this week further protects North Carolina residents from the full financial impact of storms and other extreme weather events that could affect the state’s utility infrastructure.
Gov. Roy Cooper signed Senate Bill 559 this week, which will allow utility companies such as Duke Energy, the state’s primary utility provider, to issue bonds to finance storm recovery. This storm securitization tool should save customers between 15 to 20 percent on storm costs, according to Duke Energy. However, the bill no longer includes previous language crafted by both state lawmakers and the energy giant that would have established multi-year rate plans and return on equity banding. Multi-year rate plans might have allowed utilities more flexible spending plans rather than seeking plan approval with the North Carolina Utilities Commission on a year-by-year basis.
Lawmakers across the aisle, as well as citizen groups, favor the bill in its present, finalized form.
In an email sent to Daily Energy Insider, Duke Energy issued the following statement:
“We applaud the bill sponsors for their exemplary leadership on SB559 and the Governor for signing this important legislation into law. Their advocacy helps further secure storm restoration cost savings for North Carolina energy customers and advance the dialogue on the need to modernize our state’s regulatory model. While it’s disappointing that customers, for now, are denied the benefits that multi-year rate plans and ROE banding makes possible, we believe they are vital to grid improvement and renewable energy growth, and we look forward to continuing our conversations and advocacy for these modern tools.”
