Duke’s Carolinas resource plan targets 18.5 GW new solar by 2041
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- Duke Energy filed the 2026 Carolinas Resource Plan with the South Carolina Public Service Commission, recommending a portfolio of 18.5 GW of solar, 14 GW of gas, 13 GW of energy storage, and roughly 4.5 GW of new nuclear additions over 15 years
- Duke's base forecast projects winter peak demand to climb by more than 10 GW, or roughly 30%, serving both South Carolina and North Carolina, which the utility says rank among the nation's fastest-growing states
- Gas additions through 2041 split into 8.2 GW of combined cycle generators and 5.8 GW of combustion turbines, with a 1.4 GW combined cycle facility already approved in Anderson County, SC, and turbine supply agreements signed with GE Vernova
- Duke is pursuing 80-year license extensions for its existing nuclear fleet and has received subsequent renewed licenses for two of six sites — four of 11 units — both located in South Carolina
- Solar and storage procurement is already underway, with completed facilities, projects under construction, solar-plus-storage RFPs, and an active RFP for 400 MW of standalone storage in South Carolina
- The plan preserves a 1% minimum annual energy efficiency savings target within Duke's load forecast and incorporates growing demand response capabilities
- South Carolina's Public Service Commission is expected to hold a hearing on the plan in April and issue an order by June
Why it matters: Duke Energy is locking in a 15-year buildout that still treats gas as a major near-term reliability resource — 14 GW of new gas alongside 18.5 GW of solar — even as it adds 13 GW of storage and eyes 4.5 GW of new nuclear, all to absorb a projected 10 GW jump in Carolinas winter peak demand. The mix matters because Carolinas ratepayers and regulators will decide by June whether bill-paying customers or shareholders shoulder the cost of a portfolio that bets on every major resource at once.
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