There is no Wake Forest Planning Board meeting scheduled for Tuesday, July 7, but there will be a work session for the Wake Forest town commissioners and mayor beginning at 5:30 p.m. That is when area residents will first see the new town manager, Kip Padgett. He will begin work here Monday, July 6. Work sessions are televised on Channel 10.
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The sale of the portions of the Duke Progress Energy power plants that Wake Forest and 33 other municipalities own has been postponed from June 30 to July 31 but is expected to follow the same scenario. Duke will pay $1.2 billion in cash to buy all the shares in the plants now owned by the towns and cities (Wake Forest owes $1.89 million for its shares in four plants). The North Carolina Eastern Municipal Power Agency which manages those shares will transfer $26 million in reserve funds to Duke, and the towns and cities will agree to a 30-year contract with Duke for wholesale power.
Town power customers will not see an immediate reduction in their bills because former Town Manager Mark Williams included funding for an electric rate study in the budget for next year. The study will be done this summer or fall with any rate changes to follow.
The date had to be pushed back because two regulatory approvals have not been received but are expected soon. Those are the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s transfer of the licenses for the Brunswick and Harris nuclear plants and the North Carolina Utility Commission’s approval of Duke Energy Progress’ cost recovery rider.
