Duke Energy Florida lineworkers honored at Tampa Bay Rays opening day; company pledges $1,000 for every Rays victory

• Rays recognize lineworkers' response to Hurricane Ian
• Duke Energy pledges to donate $1,000 to Share the Light Fund^® for every winning game

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., March 30, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Baseball season kicked off at Tropicana Field today, with nearly 100 Duke Energy lineworkers participating in a flag ceremony before the game.

The lineworkers and their families were recognized for their dedication and hard work following the destruction of last year's Hurricane Ian. Hundreds of Duke Energy Florida lineworkers and contractors were staged at Tropicana Field during Hurricane Ian and helped restore power to approximately 1 million customers, just three days after Ian left the state.

Today's recognition is part of the long-term relationship between the Tampa Bay Rays and Duke Energy Florida.

Tampa Bay Rays fans will have an additional reason to cheer on their favorite team this season. As fans celebrate a winning Rays game, they'll also know the win will have an impact off the field. Duke Energy will donate $1,000 to its Share the Light Fund to help families in need for every Rays regular season game won.

The Share the Light Fund helps Florida residents in need pay for utility expenses such as electric, natural gas, oil or wood. Donations are matched dollar for dollar, up to $500,000, by the Duke Energy Foundation.

"I'm really proud of the way our Florida team responded during last year's back-to-back storms," said Melissa Seixas, Duke Energy Florida state president. "We're grateful for not only the recognition by the Rays today, but our ongoing relationship working together with the team to care for the communities we serve."

For more information, visit our Share the Light Fund website.

Duke Energy Florida

Duke Energy Florida, a subsidiary of Duke Energy, owns 10,500 megawatts of energy capacity, supplying electricity to 1.9 million residential, commercial and industrial customers across a 13,000-square-mile service area in Florida.

Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), a Fortune 150 company headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., is one of America's largest energy holding companies. Its electric utilities serve 8.2 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, and collectively own 50,000 megawatts of energy capacity. Its natural gas unit serves 1.6 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Ohio and Kentucky. The company employs 27,600 people.

Duke Energy is executing an aggressive clean energy transition to achieve its goals of net-zero methane emissions from its natural gas business by 2030 and net-zero carbon emissions from electricity generation by 2050. The company has interim carbon emission targets of at least 50% reduction from electric generation by 2030, 50% for Scope 2 and certain Scope 3 upstream and downstream emissions by 2035, and 80% from electric generation by 2040. In addition, the company is investing in major electric grid enhancements and energy storage, and exploring zero-emission power generation technologies such as hydrogen and advanced nuclear. 

Duke Energy was named to Fortune's 2023 "World's Most Admired Companies" list and Forbes' "World's Best Employers" list. More information is available at duke-energy.com. The Duke Energy News Center contains news releases, fact sheets, photos and videos. Duke Energy's illumination features stories about people, innovations, community topics and environmental issues. Follow Duke Energy on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

Contact: Mariana O'Leary
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SOURCE Duke Energy