ASHEVILLE -- Duke Energy is cancelling plans for a 45 mile electric transmission line that would have spanned over the foothills of both Carolinas and was the source of major complaints.

“(Duke Energy) has created a new plan for its proposed infrastructure upgrade for the Western Carolinas in response to community feedback. Under the revised plan, the company will replace its coal plant in Asheville with two smaller gas units rather than one large one. As a result, the proposed 45-mile Foothills Transmission Line and Campobello substation are no longer necessary,” Duke said in a press release issued Wednesday\

"I want to thank everyone who has been involved in this process for their input and patience, including those who sent us more than 9,000 comments regarding our proposed transmission line and overall project," said Lloyd Yates, Duke Energy's executive vice president for market solutions and president of the Carolinas region. "We believe the process worked.

"We have been committed to developing a plan to maintain the region's power reliability with the least possible impact on communities, property owners and the environment from the start of this effort, and we believe our revised plans accomplish those goals," said Yates.

According to Duke, the new plan does require a stepped-up effort to work with customers and interested groups to expand participation in programs to reduce peak power demand and grow renewable energy and associated technologies. It also includes a two-phased approach to reconfigure the Asheville Power Plant site that will provide the same significant environmental benefits as the original modernization plan.

"While the previous plan was more robust and scaled for the longer-term, the new plan balances the concerns raised by the community and the very real need for more electricity to serve this growing region," said Yates. "We're eager to ramp up our efforts in working with the community to reduce power demand across the region through energy efficiency, demand response, renewable energy and other technologies to work collectively to avoid building additional generation in the area for as long as possible."

Opponents of the transmission line welcomed the news, but wanted Duke to consider other alternatives

“Duke Energy’s decision to abandon its proposed power line and substation is a victory for the thousands of citizens across the western Carolinas who have stood up to protect the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Piedmont,” said Frank Holleman, senior attorney, Southern Environmental Law Center.  “Through their efforts, our mountains and our quality of life have been protected against this power line and substation.   This Thanksgiving, we can be thankful that our communities and our mountains will be protected against these two threats.  We hope that in the future Duke Energy will look turn away from old fossil fuels and turn toward modern clean alternatives like solar, wind, and energy efficiency. ”
"Duke Energy wisely yielded to the outcry opposing its ill-conceived power line, but still ignores calls to move our mountains past outdated fossil fuels," said DJ Gerken, senior attorney, Southern Environmental Law Center.  "Slimming down this power plant is a half-step forward, but Duke should invest in clean renewable energy, like wind and solar, rather than committing to decades more fossil fuel electricity with a new gas plant."