NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) May 30, 2007--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services said today that Duke Energy Corp.'s (A-/Stable/NR) purchase of wind developer Tierra Energy of Austin, Texas is not considered supportive of credit quality, unless properly structured to mitigate the associated increase in business risk. Nevertheless, the transaction will not immediately affect ratings. The purchase includes more than 1,000 MW of wind assets under development in the western and southwestern U.S. Duke Energy plans to spend up to $400 million over the next few years to complete three existing development projects in Texas. Duke Energy plans to sell the power produced through long-term contracts.
