Business & Economy

State Regulators Consider Duke-Progress Merger

WUNC | By Gurnal Scott

Published June 26, 2012 at 6:10 AM EDT

The decision to permit a Duke Energy-Progress Energy merger in now in the hands of state regulators.

Gurnal Scott: North Carolina Utilities Commission chairman Ed Finley was non-committal after yesterday's hearing.

Ed Finley: We hope to rule as expeditiously as we can now that everything is in.

Duke Energy hopes it's sooner rather than later. The utility claims fuel cost savings over six years and not making customers pay for layoffs will benefit consumers. Jim Warren of energy watchdog group NC WARN says his group still believes the commission is ignoring secret deals that Duke Energy will make customers pay for

Jim Warren: They can't simply blow it off. We think it has to happen and that examination has to happen before the merger is finalized.

Duke Energy is still targeting July 1st as the date the 23-million-dollar deal becomes final.

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Gurnal Scott

Gurnal Scott joined North Carolina Public Radio in March 2012 after several stops in radio and television. After graduating from the College of Charleston in his South Carolina hometown, he began his career in radio there. He started as a sports reporter at News/Talk Radio WTMA and won five Sportscaster of the Year awards. In 1997, Gurnal moved on to television as general assignment reporter and weekend anchor for WCSC-TV in Charleston. He anchored the market's top-rated weekend newscasts until leaving Charleston for Memphis, TN in 2002. Gurnal worked at WPTY-TV for two years before returning to his roots in radio. He joined the staff of Memphis' NewsRadio 600 WREC in 2004 eventually rising to News Director. In 2006, Raleigh news radio station WPTF came calling and he became the station's chief correspondent. Gurnal’s reporting has been honored by the South Carolina Broadcasters Association, the North Carolina Associated Press, and the Radio Television Digital News Association of the Carolinas.

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