With a single blast, Duke Energy transforms the energy landscape in Wilmington

View a video of the implosion event here: https://youtu.be/6Ow3iO95mHw

The company retired the coal units in 2013 after a new natural gas-fired plant came into service at the site. The new natural gas units generate electricity more efficiently for customers and with lower emissions than the coal plant did during its operation.  

Since 2013, the team has prepared the site for full demolition. Part of this work includes removing the two iconic red-and-white striped smokestacks. Using a ring-like structure attached to the smokestacks, crews have torn down the structures piece by piece. The company expects this phase to be completed in the coming weeks.

The April 10 implosion is the first of three similar events to take place at the Sutton Plant. The next is scheduled in May and the final demolition event will take place in the fall of 2016.

View a historical feature story about this plant here: illumination.duke-energy.com/articles/l-v-sutton-plant:-the-generation-has-changed-but-not-the-dedication.

To learn more about the company's coal plant decommissioning program, visit duke-energy.com/coal-decommissioning.

Ash basin closure work continues
Duke Energy continues to make headway moving ash from the Sutton Plant to a fully lined structural fill at the Brickhaven mine site in central North Carolina.

In January, after constructing a nearly two-mile long rail line into the mine site, the company shifted to moving the majority of ash from the plant by rail to expedite this process and minimize the impact to the local community. Crews have excavated around 200,000 tons of coal ash from the Sutton Plant site.

Permitting is also underway to constructing a fully lined landfill on Sutton plant property, which will store the majority of the ash from the basins.

Closing ash basins at the site is part of the overall effort to retire coal ash operations at the Sutton Plant.

For additional information about ash basin closure at the Sutton Plant, please visit duke-energy.com/sutton.

Duke Energy Progress
Duke Energy Progress owns nuclear, coal-fired, natural gas and hydroelectric generation. That diverse fuel mix provides about 12,900 megawatts of owned electric capacity to approximately 1.5 million customers in a 32,000-square-mile service area of North Carolina and South Carolina.

Duke Energy is one of the largest electric power holding companies in the United States. Its regulated utility operations serve approximately 7.4 million electric customers located in six states in the Southeast and Midwest, representing a population of approximately 24 million people. Its Commercial Portfolio and International business segments own and operate diverse power generation assets in North America and Latin America, including a growing portfolio of renewable energy assets in the United States.

Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., Duke Energy is a S&P 100 Stock Index company traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol DUK. More information about the company is available at duke-energy.com. 

The Duke Energy News Center serves as a multimedia resource for journalists and features news releases, helpful links, photos and videos. Hosted by Duke Energy, illumination is an online destination for stories about remarkable people, innovations, and community and environmental topics. It also offers glimpses into the past and insights into the future of energy.

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SOURCE Duke Energy

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