Economic Development Strategy

Our Position:

Duke Energy’s utility companies are committed to maintaining and growing the manufacturing sector in its Carolinas and Midwest service territory; and will influence economic development policy to benefit manufacturing in all five states. This will be achieved by growing partnerships with local, regional and statewide economic development organizations, the private sector and academic circles. In addition, the company has upgraded its economic development research, marketing and business development capabilities to proactively work with manufacturing and selected commercial customers to help them locate/expand in the service territory. Duke Energy recently launched a state-of-the-art, GIS-based Web site for economic development in the Carolinas at http://www.duke-energy.com/about/ed/

The combined economic development departments of Duke Energy’s Midwest electric utilities (in Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky) were named to Site Selection magazine’s Top 10 list of utilities in economic development for the past five years. Before then, Duke Energy’s Indiana region ranked separately in the Top 10 for an additional two years. In 2005, Duke Energy’s Carolinas electric utility was named in the Top 10.

Background:

  • One of the primary objectives in founding Duke Energy’s utility companies was fostering economic development in the service area by selling competitively priced and reliable electricity to the textile, steel and auto manufacturing industries and other large commercial customers. In response to declining sales to these customers, the utility companies refocused the economic development efforts.
  • Duke Energy’s employees and leadership presence in the communities throughout the Carolinas and Midwest service territory provide the foundation for its economic development strategy. The intent of the strategy is to leverage each utility’s community presence, assets and core strengths—competitive rates and excellence in reliability, customer service, power plant and power delivery operations. By doing so, each utility company continues to support vibrant economies in the Midwest and Carolinas regions.
  • A growing manufacturing sector not only makes good sense for the region’s economy, it will also improve Duke Energy’s bottom line. Electricity sales to large manufacturing customers earn a solid return on capital invested. In addition, manufacturing creates a “multiplier effect” that generates additional power sales to nearby support industries in manufacturing, the commercial and service sectors and to residential customers.

The following outlines economic benefits of the manufacturing sector:

  • Average manufacturing salaries are 7 percent and 35 percent higher than non-manufacturing salaries in the Midwest and the Carolinas.
  • Each manufacturing job supports 2.5 to 3 jobs in the services sector..
  • Every dollar in demand for manufacturing goods generates an additional 67 cents in demand for other manufactured goods and 76 cents in demand for products and services from non-manufacturing sectors.
  • Manufacturing is responsible for approximately 2/3 of all private research and development funding in the United States—approximately $127 billion in 2002.
  • Manufacturing accounts for 62 percent of all United States exports.
  • Manufacturing contributes approximately 35 percent of corporate taxes collected by local and state governments.