PNY Provides Natural Gas to PGN

Energy services company Piedmont Natural Gas (PNY) has agreed to provide natural gas delivery service to Progress Energy's (PGN) recently announced power generation facility to be built at Progress Energy Carolinas' Wayne County, N.C. To provide gas delivery service to the plant Piedmont plans to a construct 38-miles pipeline with compression facilities by Jul 2012. Piedmont's investment is estimated to be $85 million, together with a long-term service agreement with Progress Energy Carolinas.

Progress Energy Carolinas announced plans for the power plant on Aug 18. Progress plans to retire the three coal units operating at Lee when the gas-fueled units are operative in 2013. It expects increased electricity generation from the new plant along with reduced emissions rates of about 60% for carbon dioxide, 100% for mercury rates, 100% for sulfur dioxides and more than 95% for nitrogen oxides.

Along with environmental benefits associated with the project, Piedmont sees synergies of additional economic growth and development, through the newly constructed pipeline, which will add to the natural gas infrastructure in the eastern part of North Carolina. Progress Energy Carolinas' project is likely to be a catalyst for extending natural gas supply more deeply into Eastern North Carolina, providing a cleaner electricity generation technology to the region.

Piedmont Natural Gas is primarily engaged in the distribution of natural gas to more than 1 million residential, commercial and industrial utility customers in North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. Progress Energy Carolinas, is a subsidiary of Progress Energy Inc., which engages in the generation, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity in North Carolina, South Carolina and Florida.

Get real-time market insights and profitable stock recommendations from the team of analysts at Zacks Investment Research.See all today's Analyst Blog entries.

Related terms: coal, commercial, economic growth, electricity, energy, florida, gasoline, industrial, investment, investment opinion, market, natural gas, north carolina, pipeline, plant, rates, research, residential, south carolina, technology, tennessee, utilities