Day: November 5, 2009

It seems as if Duke Energy CEO Jim Rogers should be lobbying for increased greenhouse gas emissions.

Rogers is convinced — because his grandchildren told him so — that carbon dioxide emissions are warming the planet. So Rogers helped form the U.S. Climate Action Partnership, a coalition of a few big businesses and environmental groups that lobbies for carbon caps.

Ironically, the very global cooling that Rogers seems to be for is actually hurting his company’s earnings.

According to Duke’s the third quarter earnings report, earnings-before-interest-and-tax (EBIT) for Duke’s electric and gas division decreased:

• $46 million because of unfavorable weather (i.e, a cooler summer);
• $22 million because of reduced industrial demand (i.e., weak economy); and
• $27 million because of the expiration of a temporary rate raise (i.e., government granted windfall).

All very interesting since Rogers wants to:

• Cool the planet through carbon caps;
• Weaken the economy through carbon caps; and
• Make up for losses by charging more for electricity.

But for the three factors mentioned above, USFE&G’s Q3 EBIT would have increased by 11%.

Finally, Duke has spent about $10 million since 2008 lobbying for carbon caps. That’s a lot of lost earnings itself spent working against the interests of Duke shareholders and customers.

Hey Jim, there’s a reason children aren’t allowed to run the world.