Progress Energy customers want action on global warming

Half of Progress Energy's customers in North Carolina say the company isn't doing enough to develop renewable energy, and a whopping 79 percent of customers say that global warming requires immediate and drastic action.

Those are some of the polling results the Raleigh-based electric utility released today at a conference for Wall Street analysts, showing how far public opinion has swung in favor of addressing climate change in this state.

Progress Energy, which serves 3.1 million customers in the Carolinas and Florida, regularly surveys its customers to assess the company's public image and to gauge customer sentiment on public policy. The company added questions on renewable energy about two years ago, but had not previously revealed details about its customers' changing attitudes.

The most recent survey polled 1,700 customers last fall, including about 700 in North Carolina. In one of the more surprising responses, customers said they are more interested in developing renewable energy -- such as solar, wind or animal waste -- than they are in receiving reliable electricity.

Progress officials say the recent polls present an emerging challenge: how to correct public misconceptions about renewable energy. The company says that renewables are costly and not as dependable as conventional power plants.

"The public has unrealistic expectations about renewables," John McArthur, the company's general counsel and senior vice president, told analysts. "They think it's twice as important as reliability."

The surveys also show that more than 75 percent of customers favor building new power plants to meet growing energy demand. In North Carolina, 56 percent of customers favor new nuclear plants.

Progress Energy last week applied for a federal license to add two nuclear reactors at the Shearon Harris site in Wake County, and will apply for two more reactors in Florida this year.