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April 1, 2019

Duke Energy responds to latest milestone in the safe basin closure

process
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Duke Energy today issued the following statement in response to
an announcement by the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ)
regarding the department’s evaluation of closure options for coal ash basins at the
company’s Allen, Belews Creek, Cliffside/Rogers, Marshall, Mayo and Roxboro
facilities. At the end of 2018, the company submitted to NCDEQ detailed scientific and
engineering analyses for nine of the company’s 31 North Carolina basins where site-
specific closure plans had not yet been determined.
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We are making strong progress to permanently close every ash basin in North Carolina
in ways that fully protect people and the environment, while keeping costs down as
much as possible for our customers.

With respect to the final six sites—which NCDEQ has ruled are low-risk—science and
engineering support a variety of closure methods including capping in place and hybrid
cap-in-place as appropriate solutions that all protect public health and the environment.
These closure options are also consistent with how hundreds of other basins around the
country are expected to be closed.

Excavation at some sites will take decades, stretching well beyond the current state and
federal deadlines.

Based on current estimates and closure timeframes, excavating these basins will add
approximately $4 billion to $5 billion to the current estimate of $5.6 billion for the
Carolinas.

We will carefully review today’s announcement and will continue to support solutions
that protect our customers and the environment.

Learn more about the company’s strong progress safely closing coal ash basins.

About Duke Energy

Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), a Fortune 125 company headquartered in Charlotte, N.C.,
is one of the largest energy holding companies in the U.S. It employs 30,000 people
and has an electric generating capacity of 51,000 megawatts through its regulated
utilities, and 3,000 megawatts through its nonregulated Duke Energy Renewables unit.

Duke Energy Corporation | P.O. Box 1009 | Charlotte, NC 28201-1009 | www.duke-energy.com

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Duke Energy is transforming its customers’ experience, modernizing the energy grid,
generating cleaner energy and expanding natural gas infrastructure to create a smarter
energy future for the people and communities it serves. The Electric Utilities and
Infrastructure unit’s regulated utilities serve approximately 7.7 million retail electric
customers in six states – North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and
Kentucky. The Gas Utilities and Infrastructure unit distributes natural gas to more than
1.6 million customers in five states – North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Ohio
and Kentucky. The Duke Energy Renewables unit operates wind and solar generation
facilities across the U.S., as well as energy storage and microgrid projects.

Duke Energy was named to Fortune’s 2019 “World’s Most Admired Companies” list,
and Forbes’ 2018 “America’s Best Employers” list. More information about the company
is available at duke-energy.com. The Duke Energy News Center contains news
releases, fact sheets, photos, videos and other materials. Duke Energy’s illumination
features stories about people, innovations, community topics and environmental issues.
Follow Duke Energy on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

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