Duke Energy 2Q earnings fall 17 pct By IEVA M. AUGSTUMS, AP Business Writer

Duke Energy 2Q earnings fall 17 pct By IEVA M. AUGSTUMS, AP Business Writer
46 minutes ago



CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Duke Energy Corp., one of the largest electric power companies in the United States, said Tuesday its second-quarter profit fell 17 percent after it spun off its natural gas business at the beginning of the year.

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Duke earned $293 million, or 23 cents per share, in the second quarter of 2007, down from $355 million, or 28 cents per share, during the same period in 2006.

Excluding special items and discontinued operations, the company said it earned 25 cents per share in the period.

Analysts polled by Thomson Financial forecast a profit of 20 cents per share. Thomson estimates usually exclude special items.

Revenue rose 5 percent to $3.04 billion from $2.9 billion during the same period a year earlier. Analysts expected revenue of $3.05 billion.

The stock rose 7 cents a share, to $17.97.

Second quarter results include operations from Cinergy Corp., the power company Duke bought for $9 billion in April 2006.

Results were also offset by a lower contribution from Crescent Resources, the company's commercial and residential projects, which changed from a wholly owned subsidiary to a 50-50 joint venture in September 2006.

In January, Duke spun off its natural gas unit, now trading as Spectra Energy Corp., to its shareholders. On Monday, Houston-based Spectra said profit fell 38 percent to $196 million, or 31 cents a share, in its second quarter as a separate public company.

On a call with analysts, James E. Rogers, Duke's chairman and chief executive officer, updated Duke's plans to raise rates and build new generation capacity over the next decade to meet growing consumer demand.

Duke Energy is seeking $140 million in rate increases in North Carolina and $34 million in rate increases in Ohio.

The company plans to build two natural gas-fired plants in North Carolina, Rogers said. It is still considering plans to build a single coal-fired power unit at its Cliffside power plant in western North Carolina, Rogers said.

For the quarter, Duke's U.S. electric and gas unit posted increased earnings, mainly driven by hot weather and additional long-term wholesale contracts. The company's commercial power segment also posted higher results due to increased demand because of weather.

For the first six months of the year, Duke Energy reported earnings of $650 million, or 51 cents per share, compared with $713 million, or 64 cents per share, in 2006. Revenue rose to $6.13 billion from $4.52 billion a year earlier.

Duke Energy supplies and delivers energy to 4 million customers. It has nearly 37,000 megawatts of electric generating capacity in the Midwest and the Carolinas, and natural gas distribution services in Ohio and Kentucky. In addition, Duke Energy has more than 4,000 megawatts of electric generation in Latin America.

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On the Net:

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