Duke Energy soliciting 1,300 MW solar capacity in the Carolinas

“North Carolina has been a leading solar state for Duke Energy for the past decade,” said Randy Wheeless, corporate communications with Duke Energy. “Recent legislation and our own goal to reduce carbon reduction by 70 percent make solar power even more important.”

House Bill (HB) 951, signed into law by North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper in October 2021, will allow for 55 percent of all new solar generation to be supplied by company-built solar energy facilities, with 45 percent supplied through power purchase agreements from other companies.

Duke Energy currently has 4,200 MW of solar on the grid in North Carolina, produced by more than 40 solar plants in the state. North Carolina is fourth in the United States for overall solar capacity.

The North Carolina Utilities Commission has to approve Duke’s latest proposal before it can seek bids for the new solar projects. In its request, Duke Energy proposes a minimum of 700 MW of utility-owned and third-party solar energy resources as part of its 2022 Carolinas Carbon Plan. The company already has around 600 MWs out for bid from the last round of the Competitive Procurement of Renewable Energy program. If the commission approves Duke’s latest proposal, its Carolinas utilities would seek bids this year for almost 1,300 MW worth of solar projects.

The 2022 solar procurement would be the first of an annual procurement, with the amounts of each subsequent procurement to be determined by the commission as part of the approval of the Carbon Plan, the company said.