Protesters oppose Duke Energy-Piedmont Natural Gas merger [View all]

RALEIGH -- The chief executives of Duke Energy and Piedmont Natural Gas defended their merger Monday under questioning by advocates who hope to derail it.

An attorney for NC WARN, a Durham nonprofit, and two other advocacy groups questioned the CEOs on risks to customers of the electric and gas utilities at a hearing before the N.C. Utilities Commission.

The groups oppose the $4.9 billion deal because natural gas is a fossil fuel tied to climate change and the greenhouse gas methane is released in drilling shale formations for it. They also say gas supplies, currently estimated to be large enough to supply the U.S. for a century, may be overstated.

Duke’s attorneys repeatedly objected, arguing those questions aren’t relevant to the Duke-Piedmont acquisition.

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