DUKE POWER OPENS CUSTOMER RESOURCE CENTER

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Duke Power has opened a new Customer Resource Center in Charlotte to serve its large business customers and showcase value-added business continuity, cost control, power quality, lighting and food preparation products and services. The center will offer seminars, workshops and demonstrations of state-of-the-art electrical equipment.    

“Our large business customers face an increasingly competitive environment and Duke Power is committed to working closely with them to ensure that they understand how electric technologies can benefit their bottom line,” said Sandra Meyer, group vice president of customer service, sales and marketing for Duke Power. “Our new Customer Resource Center provides an easily accessible location to demonstrate the areas where we can partner with our customers and some of the best experts in our industry.”

Duke Power has already held two very successful seminars at the center for more than 175 foodservice institutional and commercial customers on Oct. 12 and Oct. 26 that featured presentations from industry experts and live demonstrations of the latest in food preparation appliances and technologies. 

“Natural gas prices have gone up dramatically in recent years while Duke Power’s electricity rates remain stable. We feel it is important to work with our customers to explore and understand how various electric products and services can improve their competitive positions,” said Ted Schultz, vice president of Duke Power’s large business customer group. “For example, large electric boilers are often a perfect fit to more efficiently meet steam and heating requirements for large customers, and often can pay for themselves in two years or less. By adding an electric boiler and control system, customers can automatically use the lowest priced energy and mitigate their exposure to high natural gas prices.”

“In addition, most manufacturing processes now demand a continuous flow of uninterrupted electricity. Our Customer Resource Center will be used to demonstrate the array of custom business continuity and power quality solutions Duke Power can provide to fit each customer’s critical infrastructure requirements,” Schultz added.

The Customer Resource Center is located near the Charlotte Douglas International Airport at 3201 International Airport Drive, Suite 100. For more information about the center, call Duke Power at 1-800/777-7475.

Duke Power, a business unit of Duke Energy, is one of the nation’s largest electric utilities and provides safe, reliable, competitively priced electricity and value-added products and services to more than 2 million customers in North Carolina and South Carolina. In 2004, Duke Power celebrates 100 years of service. The company 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: http://www.dukepower.com.

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. 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: http://www.duke-energy.com.

Contact:	Tom Williams
Phone:	980/373-4743
24-Hour Phone:	704/382-8333
e-mail:	tcwillia@duke-energy.com