NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) Aug. 9, 2004--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services said today that it assigned its 'BBB-' senior unsecured debt rating to Duke Capital LLC's (BBB/Stable/A-2) proposed $750 million senior unsecured notes. Duke Capital is a unit of Duke Energy Corp. (BBB/Stable/A-2). The notes are a remarketing of up to $750 million of notes issued in November 2001 in connection with Duke Energy's issuance of 30 million equity units. The outlook is stable. As of June 30, 2004, the Charlotte, N.C.-based company had $21.2 billion of debt outstanding on a consolidated basis. The remarketed notes will mature in November 2006. In an effort to effectively manage debt maturities, Duke Capital may exchange a significant portion of the notes,
