(Raleigh, N.C. (AP) — The nation’s largest electric company is fighting to persuade regulators that North Carolina consumers should pay 15 percent more on average, including nearly $200 million a year to clean up the toxic byproducts of burning coal to generate power.

Consumers, the state’s attorney general and the state’s utilities consumer advocate are digging in ahead of hearings starting Monday. Charlotte-based Duke Energy Corp.’s requested $478 million passes along the full cost of cleaning up its coal ash pits.

The rate increase would affect customers of Duke Energy Progress, the subsidiary that operates in much of eastern North Carolina and around Asheville. It would add an extra $18 per month to the typical household bill of $105.

Duke Energy’s western North Carolina subsidiary is seeking a separate 17 percent increase on households.

 

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