Why does the demand charge differ so much within North Carolina?

Duke Energy Carolinas and Duke Energy Progress are separate subsidiaries with separate tariff books. The per-kW demand charge is several times higher on DEP than on DEC — the exact figures are in the rate table — so a site's territory assignment materially changes its electricity bill at low utilization.

Is there a pending rate change in North Carolina?

Yes. Both Duke utilities have multi-year rate plans before the Utilities Commission (dockets E-7 Sub 1329 and E-2 Sub 1380), with a statutory decision deadline of September 20, 2026 and new rates expected effective January 1, 2027. The modeled rates carry a re-derive note tied to that order.

Does North Carolina tax public EV charging per kilowatt-hour?

No per-kWh charging excise was found in North Carolina beyond the general 7% electricity sales tax, which is already folded into the modeled Duke rates. North Carolina does levy a high flat annual EV registration fee, which is a vehicle-owner cost rather than a site input.

ForgeAsset / Supercharger ROI / North Carolina

Tesla Supercharger ROI in North Carolina

North Carolina is served by two separately regulated Duke Energy utilities, and which one serves a site changes the economics substantially. ForgeAsset models both — Duke Energy Carolinas (DEC, the Charlotte and Triad Piedmont) and Duke Energy Progress (DEP, Raleigh, Wilmington, and eastern North Carolina) — each against North Carolina's tax stack, with the state's 7% electricity sales tax folded into the rates.

Model a North Carolina site

What makes North Carolina economics distinct

Two rate books in one state

DEC and DEP are separate subsidiaries with separate tariff books and separate regulatory dockets. The practical consequence is a demand charge several times higher on DEP than on DEC — both are shown side by side in the rate table below. For a low-utilization DC fast charger, where the demand charge can dominate the bill, which side of the internal territory line a site sits on is a first-order input.

A live rate case with a hard deadline

Both Duke utilities filed multi-year rate plans in November 2025 (dockets E-7 Sub 1329 for DEC and E-2 Sub 1380 for DEP). Duke reduced its DEC request during the proceeding, and North Carolina law requires the Utilities Commission to rule within ten months — by September 20, 2026 — with new rates expected to take effect January 1, 2027. That gives a North Carolina scenario a concrete, dated rate-change catalyst rather than an open-ended assumption.

An inert billing-demand ratchet

Both Duke schedules carry a billing-demand ratchet, which can raise the billed peak above the measured peak. Under the model's standing assumption that a Supercharger site hits its hardware peak every month, the ratchet resolves to the current-month peak, so the flat per-kW mapping is exact rather than an approximation. The site's actual load profile is the thing to check against that assumption.

Two funding channels, state and federal

North Carolina ran its own Volkswagen-settlement DC fast-charging grant program (roughly $9.6 million across 82 sites and 163 ports) independent of its $109 million federal NEVI allocation, now in a second RFP wave along I-26, I-40, I-77, I-85, I-95, and US corridors.

Utilities and tariffs modeled in North Carolina

Utility & tariff	Energy	Demand
Duke Energy Carolinas LGS	10.2¢/kWh flat	$5.16/kW of monthly peak
Duke Energy Progress LGS	6.5¢/kWh flat	$19.81/kW of monthly peak

Rates are digit-verified against each utility's own filed sheets and update within two weeks of any revision. Full derivations are on the methodology page.

North Carolina tax profile

Sales tax on hardware: 7.25%
Business personal property tax: 0.83% of equipment value (example rate)
Clean-fuels credit: no program
Per-kWh charging excise: none

North Carolina tax defaults applied: no clean-fuels credit program exists in North Carolina (the LCFS revenue line is $0), LLC costs use the $200/yr annual report, and the sales-tax and property-tax defaults use Wake County and Mecklenburg-example rates — county rates vary and both fields are editable in later steps. North Carolina's 7% sales tax on electricity purchases is already included in the Duke Energy tariff rates. A Duke Energy rate case is pending (order expected around 2026-09-20); filed rates may change in 2027.

North Carolina programs and incentives

Duke Energy Charger Prep Credit (EV Complete)

A one-time credit toward make-ready electrical infrastructure — wiring, panel and service upgrades — at business sites, scaling by charger type and whether a service upgrade is needed. It does not cover the charger hardware, permitting, or labor. Applications are due within 120 days of final invoice or permit approval.

NC DEQ Volkswagen-settlement DC fast-charging awards

A state grant program that awarded roughly $9.6 million across 82 sites and 163 DC fast ports in two phases along priority corridors and at existing sites; individual awards ranged from tens of thousands to several hundred thousand dollars per site.

NEVI (federal, NCDOT-administered)

Roughly $109 million over seven years; NCDOT's second-wave RFP targeted 16 new stations spaced about every 50 miles along the interstate corridors, with corridor build-out estimated at around three more years.

North Carolina charging market

North Carolina carries roughly 90 Supercharger stations, concentrated on the I-40, I-85, and I-95 corridors and in the Charlotte, Triangle, and Triad metros. The state's DEC and DEP territories are regulated independently, so rate-case timing and demand-charge levels can differ between two sites only a county apart.

North Carolina Supercharger ROI — questions

Why does the demand charge differ so much within North Carolina?: Duke Energy Carolinas and Duke Energy Progress are separate subsidiaries with separate tariff books. The per-kW demand charge is several times higher on DEP than on DEC — the exact figures are in the rate table — so a site's territory assignment materially changes its electricity bill at low utilization.
Is there a pending rate change in North Carolina?: Yes. Both Duke utilities have multi-year rate plans before the Utilities Commission (dockets E-7 Sub 1329 and E-2 Sub 1380), with a statutory decision deadline of September 20, 2026 and new rates expected effective January 1, 2027. The modeled rates carry a re-derive note tied to that order.
Does North Carolina tax public EV charging per kilowatt-hour?: No per-kWh charging excise was found in North Carolina beyond the general 7% electricity sales tax, which is already folded into the modeled Duke rates. North Carolina does levy a high flat annual EV registration fee, which is a vehicle-owner cost rather than a site input.

Sources

Model a Tesla V4 Supercharger site in North Carolina — payback, NPV, IRR, and a 15-year cash flow from your own inputs.

Run a North Carolina scenario

Other states: California, Georgia, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Florida, Arizona, Texas, Virginia, Illinois, Michigan, Tennessee. Coverage spans twelve states in total — see the full list.

ForgeAsset is software, not investment, tax, or legal advice — outputs are model estimates from your inputs, not guarantees. Rates and programs current as of research; verify current terms with each source before committing capital.