Yahoo Finance

• Simplified business model, solid strategy and modernized regulatory constructs position company to meet growing and dynamic energy demand

• Reliability, resiliency and affordability remain cornerstones of success

CHARLOTTE, N.C., May 1, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- In 2024, Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK) continued to make meaningful progress on its energy modernization strategy, investing in new infrastructure and collaborating with stakeholders to achieve constructive outcomes across its jurisdictions, President and Chief Executive Officer Harry Sideris told investors during the company's annual shareholder meeting today.

"The path forward is clear as we navigate this decade of record infrastructure build and load growth," he said. "We remain focused on delivering value to our shareholders while meeting our customers' energy demands – now and into the future."

Sideris cited several milestones:

• "Our capital plan reflects $83 billion of investments over the next five years – one of the largest in the regulated industry – to meet growing demand while increasing reliability and affordability for our customers."

• "We invested in innovative grid improvements to enhance reliability and resiliency, which helped to avoid more than 2.3 million customer outages and more than 11 million hours of total outage time over the course of the year."

• "We delivered constructive outcomes in four rate cases in the Carolinas, Florida and Indiana. These rulings approve $45 billion of historic and future rate-based investments to create value for customers and shareholders."

• "We advanced new generation through our integrated resource plans in North Carolina, South Carolina, Indiana and Kentucky."

• "We moved forward with plans to add 5 gigawatts of new natural gas generation across our jurisdictions through 2029."

• "And we partnered with TVA, GE Hitachi and others in the industry to help advance emerging technologies, including small modular reactors."

Operational excellence and safety underpin Duke Energy's strategic progress

In his first shareholder meeting as CEO, Sideris also reinforced the strength of the company's fundamentals.

"All of our strategic progress in 2024 was underpinned by a strong foundation and track record of safety and operational excellence, including our response to the most significant hurricane season we have ever experienced in our company's history," said Sideris.

He attributed the company's successful response to back-to-back hurricanes to the unwavering commitment of its 26,000 employees and utility partners, enhanced communications with customers and stakeholders, and strategic preparation.