DUKE ENERGY GAS TRANSMISSION: STATUS OF FIRE AT MOSS BLUFF NATURAL GAS STORAGE FACILITY

HOUSTON -- A fire, which ignited early Thursday morning at the Moss Bluff salt cavern storage facility outside Houston, continued to burn this afternoon in an isolated area contained to the facility.

No one was injured in the fire which does not pose a health hazard to residents.  Duke Energy Gas Transmission is working with local and state emergency officials to address the situation.  Boots and Coots International Well Control (a global emergency response company specializing in oil and gas fires) is on-site assessing the fire, which is located above-ground, to determine the best approach to extinguish the fire.

An investigation into the cause of the fire is underway and damage assessments are continuing.

The facility has been isolated from five nearby pipelines, which continue to operate. However, due to the incident, service to Moss Bluff storage customers has been suspended.

Located in Liberty County, Texas, approximately 40 miles northeast of Houston, the Moss Bluff salt cavern storage facility, which is owned by Duke Energy Market Hub Partners, provides natural gas producers and shippers with approximately 16 billion cubic feet of storage.

Duke Energy Gas Transmission is a North American leader in developing energy infrastructure and connecting major natural gas supply basins to growing markets. The company’s natural gas operations include more than 17,500 miles of transmission pipeline and about 250 billion cubic feet of storage capacity in Canada and the United States. More information on DEGT can be found at:  http://www.duke-energy.com/businesses/companies/degt.asp

Duke Energy is a diversified energy company with a portfolio of natural gas and electric businesses, both regulated and unregulated, and an affiliated real estate company. Duke Energy supplies, delivers and processes energy for customers in North America and selected international markets. In 2004, the company celebrates a century of service with the 100th anniversary of its electric utility Duke Power. Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., Duke Energy 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:	Gretchen Krueger
Phone:	713-627-4072
24-Hour Phone:	704-382-8333
e-mail:	gdkrueger@duke-energy.com