SUCCESS! DUKE POWER'S LATEST BILLING AND PAYMENT OPTION: E-BILL

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Today, more than 86,000 customers enrolled in Duke Power’s e-Bill program are enjoying the benefits of receiving and paying their electric bill without leaving their home, buying a stamp, or paying a charge!

“Enrollment is simple, easy and convenient,” said Angi Clinton, vice president of Duke Power’s residential and small business division. “New e-business opportunities provide multitudes of choices for customers to do business at home and on their schedule. We are proud to include this program to our list of e-business options.”

The e-Bill program is a voluntary, no charge option that allows customers to receive and/or receive and pay their electric bill online, anytime. The program offers a secure environment to conduct business transactions with Duke Power including flexible payment options such as online payment through bank checking account or money market accounts.

Customers can also electronically access important monthly bill insert information that is generally sent with those accounts that are mailed.

Once a customer has enrolled for e-Bill view and/or payment, they will no longer receive a bill in the mail. If you are already a Duke Power bank draft customer, this program will now allow you to receive your bill electronically.

“Our research shows that customers want reliable, economic electricity -- and as many options as possible for doing business with us,” continued Clinton. “We are proud of our reliability, keeping the lights on for our customers 99.97 percent of the time. Our current rates to customers are about what they were in 1986. And programs such as e-Bill continue our strong focus on customer service, 24-hours-a-day.”

Duke Power began offering its new e-Bill option to customers in September of last year, expecting the industry average enrollment of about 2 percent. “We are delighted to see that more than double those numbers of customers are taking advantage of this convenient option,” Clinton said.

To access a demonstration of the enrollment process or to enroll in this new program, log on to www.dukepower.com.

If customers already receive and pay bills online through a bill payment service provided by banks, credit unions, portals, etc., they may want to receive their Duke Power e-Bill at that same site. By visiting Duke Power’s Web site, customers can view a full listing of over 400 bill payment sites where customers can receive e-bills.

To better manage seasonal shifts and energy costs, Duke Power also offers the Equalized Payment Plan (EPP) and Automatic Payment Plan (APP or bank draft). Interested customers can call their local Duke Power number for information on these programs.

Duke Power, a business unit of Duke Energy, is one of the nation’s largest electric utilities and provides safe, reliable, competitively priced electricity to more than 2 million customers in North Carolina and South Carolina. Duke Power operates three nuclear generating stations, eight coal-fired stations, 31 hydroelectric stations and numerous combustion turbine units. Total system generating capability is approximately 19,900 megawatts. More information about Duke Power is available on the Internet at: www.dukepower.com.

Duke Energy is a diversified multinational energy company with an integrated network of energy assets and expertise. The company manages a dynamic portfolio of natural gas and electric supply, delivery and trading businesses – meeting the energy needs of customers throughout North America and in key markets around the world. Duke Energy, headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., is a Fortune 500 company traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol DUK. More information about the company is available on the Internet at: www.duke-energy.com.

Contact:	Guynn Savage
Phone:	704/382-8350
24-Hour Phone:	704/382-8333
e-mail:	ghsavage@duke-energy.com