Duke Energy and Tech Giants Reach Landmark Deal to Shield North Carolina Ratepayers from Data Center Costs

Duke Energy and major technology companies including Amazon, Google, Meta, and Microsoft reached a settlement agreement aimed at protecting existing North Carolina customers from bearing the infrastructure costs of massive new data center development. The accord, involving the Department of Defense and consumer advocacy groups, establishes new mandatory protections for residential and small business ratepayers as the state becomes a major hub for AI-driven computing capacity.