Rising Energy Bills Aren’t Inevitable. North Carolina Can Reverse the Trend with Proven Strategies.

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By Jen McGivney

It’s a time of unprecedented increases in electricity prices. Since 2021, prices spiked 40% on average around the country. No other decade has seen electricity prices increase so much, so quickly. Last year alone, prices rose 7% on average around the U.S. Yet in a few states—California, Arizona, Nevada, and Hawaii—electric bills went down last year.

Why is there a state-by-state difference? After all, global and national issues are behind many causes of these higher bills. Oil and natural gas costs are volatile, and weather’s increasingly extreme. High U.S. tariffs on imported solar cells and panels raise the cost of solar power, and high tariffs on steel raise the costs of all forms of energy production. Recent federal limitations on solar and wind resources will, in turn, raise the costs of electricity and natural gas, costing the U.S. $121.2 billion between 2027 and 2033, according to the Corporate Energy Buyers Association (CEBA).

Considering these challenges, why aren’t electricity bills increasing equally across the country? The answer to this question reveals opportunity for North Carolina. States are vulnerable to these national and global headwinds. Yet there are proven strategies that states can use to manage their energy challenges – and with them, to lower electricity prices, too.

“We are in something of an energy crisis now,” says Chris Carmody, executive director of Carolinas Clean Energy Business Association (CCEBA). “I hope that this crisis will lead people to think differently and to become more open-minded about the approaches we can take to make our electrical grid more cost competitive.”

It’s a crucial time to embrace new ideas: 57% of North Carolinians reported that energy and utility costs have become unaffordable, according to a Catawba College-YouGov survey released this month. Here are three strategies that North Carolina can adopt to manage electric prices for consumers.

Strategy 1: Encourage competition on the grid.

When a homeowner begins a renovation project, they begin by seeking bids from several contractors. It’d be unwise to accept the first bid without any comparison. Yet in states with fully regulated, monopoly-driven energy grids—such as North Carolina—this is how it works.

Some states have wholesale electricity markets. In these markets, multiple utilities (who provide energy to consumers) and multiple power generators (who sell energy to those utilities) interact in an auction. Utilities request bids for the power they need, and the lowest-priced bids from generators win.

Competition brings transparency, revealing the costs of energy. It also creates savings. When utilities pay less for energy, consumers do, too.

It doesn’t require a wholesale electricity market to bring competition to the grid, however. Another option has emerged below the state line: South Carolina has created a competitive procurement model for stand-alone storage. Stand-alone storage connects a battery system to the grid; when energy usage is low, the battery stores energy, and when usage peaks, the battery powers the grid. Battery storage facilities that meet the state’s specifications can compete to power the grid.

“South Carolina will set an example,” Carmody says. “I think people there will not only benefit from lower prices for standalone storage, but they’ll also learn about the economics and potential of that storage.”

Although North Carolina created a competitive model for solar projects, a 2026 order from the North Carolina Utility Commission paused new solar and solar-plus-storage projects. This effectively ended the competitive procurement process this year. CCEBA has asked the commission to withdraw the order.

Strategy 2: Upgrade the grid’s technology.

The Southeast is the only major region in the country that has not invested in a significant upgrade of its grid over the past decade. Such upgrades would reduce costs, improve reliability, and create new efficiencies. Investing $5 billion into the region’s grid would save $8 billion, according to a Brattle Group study.

“The grid is getting older, especially here in the Eastern Interconnect. It’s a 120-year-old machine in many places,” says Timothy Johnson, Chair of Energy and Environment at Duke University. “With population growth and severe weather events, there’s a need to upgrade a lot of the infrastructure.”

Effective upgrades can be made to our existing grid, several of which are underway, and others are still possible. For example, Duke Energy is upgrading power lines as part of its Red Zone Expansion Plan, allowing it to distribute more inexpensive forms of energy across parts of the state. Beyond that, several forms of Advanced Transmission Technologies (ATTs) could add capacity, speed, and resilience to our current grid.

“Specific types of technologies can get more capacity out of the existing system,” Carmody says. “There are things that can be done right now.”

Strategy 3: Fight disinformation and embrace innovation.

Old misconceptions about energy still persist. Some people still believe that solar power is only available when the sun is out. (Not true: Energy storage allows solar to be ready when it’s needed.) Some people still believe coal is the cheapest form of energy. (Not true: A study showed that 99% of coal plants cost more to run than local wind, solar, or energy storage resources.) The solution to an economical and reliable grid is an all-of-the-above strategy which captures the strengths of multiple forms of energy while avoiding reliance on any single one.

While many people see hope in nuclear power, it’ll likely be at least a decade before it expands significantly in North Carolina. Even then, nuclear power is the most expensive generation option. Next-generation small modular reactors may be less costly, but waiting for future developments means ignoring present-day solutions.

“There’s a misunderstanding that we need to stay in a 1939 vehicle until we can have a flying car, and that’s not how the evolution of technology works,” Carmody says. “At this point, solar and storage offers a fast way to power. It’s easy and quick to build, and it’s a reliable energy source that can be very useful, especially during these next couple decades.”

Those next couple decades involve a great deal of uncertainty.

“After years of modest projected growth in electricity demand, suddenly it’s increasing exponentially,” Johnson says. “And every time there’s a new forecast from the utility, it’s going up even more.”

With rising costs, unpredictable markets, and high demand, Carmody believes this is the time to embrace innovative and pragmatic thinking about energy solutions in North Carolina. It’s not a matter of either/or, nor is it a matter of waiting for the perfect solution. But it is a matter of action.

“It’s not a zero-sum game between forms of energy,” Carmody says. “I see hope in competition. I see hope in technology. This poses an opportunity to demonstrate how to use the grid more effectively and whether there are different approaches we can take.”