Duke Energy 10-K 2025-12-31

UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

(Mark One)

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2025 or

For the transition period from________to________

Commission File Number			Registrant, State of Incorporation or Organization, Address of Principal Executive Offices, Zip Code and Telephone Number			IRS Employer Identification No.
1-32853			DUKE ENERGY CORPORATION			20-2777218

(a Delaware corporation)

525 South Tryon Street

Charlotte, North Carolina 28202

800-488-3853

(a North Carolina limited liability company)

525 South Tryon Street

Charlotte, North Carolina 28202

800-488-3853

(a North Carolina corporation)

411 Fayetteville Street

Raleigh, North Carolina 27601

800-488-3853

(a North Carolina limited liability company)

411 Fayetteville Street

Raleigh, North Carolina 27601

800-488-3853

(a Florida limited liability company)

299 First Avenue North

St. Petersburg, Florida 33701

800-488-3853

(an Ohio corporation)

139 East Fourth Street

Cincinnati, Ohio 45202

800-488-3853

(an Indiana limited liability company)

1000 East Main Street

Plainfield, Indiana 46168

800-488-3853

(a North Carolina corporation)

525 South Tryon Street

Charlotte, North Carolina 28202

800-488-3853

SECURITIES REGISTERED PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(b) OF THE ACT:

Name of each exchange on

Registrant Title of each class Trading symbols which registered

Duke Energy Corporation Common Stock, $0.001 par value DUK New York Stock Exchange LLC

(Duke Energy)

Duke Energy 5.625% Junior Subordinated Debentures due DUKB New York Stock Exchange LLC

September 15, 2078

Duke Energy Depositary Shares, each representing a 1/1,000th DUK PR A New York Stock Exchange LLC

interest in a share of 5.75% Series A Cumulative

Redeemable Perpetual Preferred Stock, par value

$0.001 per share

Duke Energy 3.10% Senior Notes due 2028 DUK 28A New York Stock Exchange LLC

Duke Energy 3.85% Senior Notes due 2034 DUK 34 New York Stock Exchange LLC

Duke Energy 3.75% Senior Notes due 2031 DUK 31A New York Stock Exchange LLC

SECURITIES REGISTERED PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(g) OF THE ACT: None

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act. Yes ☐ No ☒ (Response applicable to all registrants.)

Indicate by check mark whether the registrants (1) have filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☒ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrants have submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes ☒ No ¨

Indicate by check mark whether Duke Energy is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and "emerging growth company" in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.:

Large Accelerated Filer ☒ Accelerated Filer ¨ Non-accelerated Filer ☐ Smaller Reporting Company ☐ Emerging Growth Company ☐

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether each of Duke Energy Carolinas, Progress Energy, Duke Energy Progress, Duke Energy Florida, Duke Energy Ohio, Duke Energy Indiana and Piedmont is a large accelerated filer, accelerated filer, non-accelerated filer, smaller reporting company, or emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and "emerging growth company" in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.:

Large Accelerated Filer ¨ Accelerated Filer ¨ Non-accelerated Filer ☒ Smaller Reporting Company ☐ Emerging Growth Company ☐

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☒

If securities are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act, indicate by check mark whether the financial statements of the registrant included in the filing reflect the correction of an error to previously issued financial statements. ¨

Indicate by check mark whether any of those error corrections are restatements that required a recovery analysis of incentive-based compensation received by any of the registrant’s executive officers during the relevant recovery period pursuant to §240.10D-1(b). ¨

Indicate by check mark whether each of the registrants is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes ☐ No x

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

Portions of the Duke Energy definitive proxy statement for the 2026 Annual Meeting of the Shareholders or an amendment to this Annual Report are incorporated by reference into PART III, Items 10, 11 and 13 hereof.

This combined Form 10-K is filed separately by eight registrants: Duke Energy, Duke Energy Carolinas, Progress Energy, Duke Energy Progress, Duke Energy Florida, Duke Energy Ohio, Duke Energy Indiana and Piedmont (collectively the Duke Energy Registrants). Information contained herein relating to any individual registrant is filed by such registrant solely on its own behalf. Each registrant makes no representation as to information relating exclusively to the other registrants.

Duke Energy Carolinas, Progress Energy, Duke Energy Progress, Duke Energy Florida, Duke Energy Ohio, Duke Energy Indiana and Piedmont meet the conditions set forth in General Instructions I(1)(a) and (b) of Form 10-K and are, therefore, filing this Form 10-K with the reduced disclosure format specified in General Instructions I(2) of Form 10-K.

Auditor Firm ID: 34 Auditor Name: Deloitte & Touche LLP Auditor Location: Charlotte, NC

TABLE OF CONTENTS

FORM 10-K FOR THE YEAR ENDED December 31, 2025

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION

This document includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Forward-looking statements are based on management’s beliefs and assumptions and can often be identified by terms and phrases that include “anticipate,” “believe,” “intend,” “estimate,” “expect,” “continue,” “should,” “could,” “may,” “plan,” “project,” “predict,” “will,” “potential,” “forecast,” “target,” “guidance,” “outlook” or other similar terminology. Various factors may cause actual results to be materially different than the suggested outcomes within forward-looking statements; accordingly, there is no assurance that such results will be realized. These factors include, but are not limited to:

◦The ability to implement our business strategy, including meeting forecasted load growth demand, grid and fleet modernization objectives, and reducing carbon emissions, while balancing customer reliability and keeping costs as low as possible for our customers;

◦State, federal and foreign legislative and regulatory initiatives, including costs of compliance with existing and future environmental requirements and/or uncertainty of applicability or changes to such legislative and regulatory initiatives, including those related to climate change, as well as rulings that affect cost and investment recovery or have an impact on rate structures or market prices;

◦The extent and timing of costs and liabilities to comply with federal and state laws, regulations and legal requirements related to coal ash remediation, including amounts for required closure of certain ash impoundments, are uncertain and difficult to estimate;

◦The ability to timely recover eligible costs, including amounts associated with coal ash impoundment retirement obligations, asset retirement and construction costs related to carbon emissions reductions, and costs related to significant weather events, and to earn an adequate return on investment through rate case proceedings and the regulatory process;

◦The costs of decommissioning nuclear facilities could prove to be more extensive than amounts estimated and all costs may not be fully recoverable through the regulatory process;

◦The impact of extraordinary external events, such as a global pandemic, trade wars or military conflict, and their collateral consequences, including the disruption of global supply chains or the economic activity in our service territories;

◦Costs and effects of legal and administrative proceedings, settlements, investigations and claims;

◦Industrial, commercial and residential decline in service territories or customer bases resulting from sustained downturns of the economy, storm damage, reduced customer usage due to cost pressures from inflation, tariffs, or fuel costs, worsening economic health of our service territories, reductions in customer usage patterns, or lower than anticipated load growth, particularly if usage of electricity by data centers is less than currently projected, energy efficiency efforts, natural gas building and appliance electrification, and use of alternative energy sources, such as self-generation and distributed generation technologies;

◦Federal and state regulations, laws and other efforts designed to promote and expand the use of energy efficiency measures, natural gas electrification, and distributed generation technologies, such as private solar and battery storage, in Duke Energy service territories could result in a reduced number of customers, excess generation resources as well as stranded costs;

◦Advancements in technology, including AI;

◦Additional competition in electric and natural gas markets, municipalization and continued industry consolidation;

◦The influence of weather and other natural phenomena on operations, financial position, and cash flows, including the economic, operational and other effects of severe storms, hurricanes, droughts, earthquakes and tornadoes, including extreme weather associated with climate change;

◦Changing or conflicting investor, customer and other stakeholder expectations and demands, particularly regarding environmental, social and governance matters and costs related thereto;

◦The ability to successfully operate electric generating facilities and deliver electricity to customers including direct or indirect effects to the Company resulting from an incident that affects the United States electric grid or generating resources;

◦Operational interruptions to our natural gas distribution and transmission activities;

◦The availability of adequate interstate pipeline transportation capacity and natural gas supply;

◦The impact on facilities and business from a terrorist or other attack, war, vandalism, cybersecurity threats, data security breaches, operational events, information technology failures or other catastrophic events, such as severe storms, fires, explosions, pandemic health events or other similar occurrences;

◦The inherent risks associated with the operation of nuclear facilities, including environmental, health, safety, regulatory and financial risks, including the financial stability of third-party service providers;

◦The timing and extent of changes in commodity prices, including any impact from increased tariffs, export controls and interest rates, and the ability to timely recover such costs through the regulatory process, where appropriate, and their impact on liquidity positions and the value of underlying assets;

◦The results of financing efforts, including the ability to obtain financing on favorable terms, which can be affected by various factors, including credit ratings, interest rate fluctuations, compliance with debt covenants and conditions, an individual utility’s generation portfolio, and general market and economic conditions;

◦Credit ratings of the Duke Energy Registrants may be different from what is expected;

◦Declines in the market prices of equity and fixed-income securities and resultant cash funding requirements for defined benefit pension plans, other post-retirement benefit plans and nuclear decommissioning trust funds;

◦Construction and development risks associated with the completion of the Duke Energy Registrants’ capital investment projects, including risks related to financing, timing and receipt of necessary regulatory approvals, obtaining and complying with terms of permits, meeting construction budgets and schedules, obtaining sufficient skilled labor and satisfying operating and environmental performance standards, as well as the ability to recover costs from customers in a timely manner, or at all;

◦Changes in rules for regional transmission organizations, including changes in rate designs and new and evolving capacity markets, and risks related to obligations created by the default of other participants;

◦The ability to control operation and maintenance costs;

◦The level of creditworthiness of counterparties to transactions;

◦The ability to obtain adequate insurance at acceptable costs and recover on claims made;

◦Employee workforce factors, including the potential inability to attract and retain key personnel;

◦The ability of subsidiaries to pay dividends or distributions to Duke Energy Corporation holding company (the Parent);

◦The performance of projects undertaken by our businesses and the success of efforts to invest in and develop new opportunities;

◦The effect of accounting and reporting pronouncements issued periodically by accounting standard-setting bodies and the SEC;

◦The impact of United States tax legislation to our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows and our credit ratings;

◦The impacts from potential impairments of goodwill or investment carrying values;

◦Asset or business acquisitions and dispositions may not be consummated or yield the anticipated benefits, which could adversely affect our financial condition, credit metrics or ability to execute strategic and capital plans; and

◦The actions of activist shareholders could disrupt our operations, impact our ability to execute on our business strategy, or cause fluctuations in the trading price of our common stock.

Additional risks and uncertainties are identified and discussed in the Duke Energy Registrants' reports filed with the SEC and available at the SEC's website at sec.gov. In light of these risks, uncertainties and assumptions, the events described in the forward-looking statements might not occur or might occur to a different extent or at a different time than described. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made and the Duke Energy Registrants expressly disclaim an obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Glossary of Terms

The following terms or acronyms used in this Form 10-K are defined below:

DUKE ENERGY

General

Duke Energy was incorporated on May 3, 2005, and is an energy company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, subject to regulation by the FERC and other regulatory agencies listed below. Duke Energy operates in the U.S. primarily through its direct and indirect subsidiaries. Certain Duke Energy subsidiaries are also Subsidiary Registrants, including Duke Energy Carolinas, Progress Energy, Duke Energy Progress, Duke Energy Florida, Duke Energy Ohio, Duke Energy Indiana and Piedmont. Operations in Kentucky are conducted through Duke Energy Ohio's wholly owned subsidiary, Duke Energy Kentucky. References herein to Duke Energy Ohio include Duke Energy Ohio and its subsidiaries, unless otherwise noted. When discussing Duke Energy’s consolidated financial information, it necessarily includes the results of its separate Subsidiary Registrants, which along with Duke Energy, are collectively referred to as the Duke Energy Registrants.

The Duke Energy Registrants electronically file reports with the SEC, including Annual Reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, proxy statements and amendments to such reports.

The SEC maintains an internet site that contains reports, proxy and information statements and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC at sec.gov. Additionally, information about the Duke Energy Registrants, including reports filed with the SEC, is available through Duke Energy’s website at duke-energy.com. Such reports are accessible at no charge and are made available as soon as reasonably practicable after such material is filed with or furnished to the SEC.

Business Segments

Duke Energy's segment structure includes two reportable business segments: Electric Utilities and Infrastructure (EU&I) and Gas Utilities and Infrastructure (GU&I). The remainder of Duke Energy’s operations is presented as Other. Duke Energy's chief operating decision-maker routinely reviews financial information about these business segments in deciding how to allocate resources and evaluate the performance of the business. For additional information on these business segments, including financial and geographic information, see Note 3 to the Consolidated Financial Statements, “Business Segments.” The following sections describe the business and operations for the Duke Energy business segments, as well as Other.

ELECTRIC UTILITIES AND INFRASTRUCTURE

EU&I conducts operations primarily through the regulated public utilities of Duke Energy Carolinas, Duke Energy Progress, Duke Energy Florida, Duke Energy Indiana and Duke Energy Ohio. EU&I provides retail electric service through the generation, transmission, distribution and sale of electricity to approximately 8.7 million customers within the Southeast and Midwest regions of the U.S. The service territory is approximately 90,000 square miles across six states with a total estimated population of 27 million. The operations include electricity sold wholesale to municipalities, electric cooperative utilities and other load-serving entities.

The electric operations and investments in projects are subject to the rules and regulations of the FERC, the NRC, the NCUC, the PSCSC, the FPSC, the IURC, the PUCO and the KPSC.

In August 2025, Duke Energy entered into an investment agreement with an affiliate of Brookfield Super-Core Infrastructure Partners to receive $6 billion in exchange for an eventual anticipated 19.7% indirect investment in Duke Energy Florida. The transaction will be completed following a series of closings. See Note 2 to the Consolidated Financial Statements, “Dispositions,” for additional information.

In March 2025, Duke Energy sold its indirect 50% ownership interest in DATC Path 15 Transmission LLC. In November 2024, Duke Energy sold its 50% ownership interest in Pioneer. See Note 13 to the Consolidated Financial Statements, “Investments in Unconsolidated Affiliates” for further information.

The following map shows the service territory for EU&I as of December 31, 2025.

The following table represents the distribution of GWh billed sales by customer class for the year ended December 31, 2025.

The number of retail customers within the EU&I service territory is expected to increase over time. Weather-normal sales volumes have shown growth in 2025 compared to 2024 due primarily to continued residential customer growth and strength in the commercial sector including data center usage. Industrial sales remained soft due to overall weakness across the class, including some manufacturing plant closings in certain jurisdictions and impacts of continued high interest rates. The impact on customers' usage of electricity from these factors and other potential economic dynamics continues to be monitored. Over a longer time frame, it is expected that the continued adoption of more efficient housing and appliances will have a negative impact on average usage per residential customer; however, decoupled rates in North Carolina and various rate design mechanisms in other jurisdictions partially mitigate the impact of the declining usage per customer on overall profitability. Commercial and industrial sales volumes are expected to grow over this longer time frame as sales benefit from a robust economic development portfolio.

Seasonality and the Impact of Weather

Revenues and costs are influenced by seasonal weather patterns. Peak sales of electricity occur during the summer and winter months, which results in higher revenue and cash flows during these periods. By contrast, lower sales of electricity occur during the spring and fall, allowing for scheduled plant maintenance. Residential and commercial customers are typically more impacted by weather than industrial customers, although decoupling mechanisms in certain jurisdictions may mitigate some of the weather impacts. Estimated weather impacts are based on actual current period weather compared to normal weather conditions. Normal weather conditions are defined as the long-term average of actual historical weather

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In addition to other disclosures within this Form 10-K, including "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations – Matters Impacting Future Results" for each registrant in Item 7, and other documents filed with the SEC from time to time, the following factors should be considered in evaluating Duke Energy and its subsidiaries. Such factors could affect actual results of operations and cause results to differ substantially from those currently expected or sought. Unless otherwise indicated, risk factors discussed below generally relate to risks associated with all of the Duke Energy Registrants. Risks identified at the Subsidiary Registrant level are generally applicable to Duke Energy.

BUSINESS STRATEGY RISKS

Duke Energy’s future results could be adversely affected if it is unable to implement its business strategy to provide reliable energy while maintaining low costs and balancing energy modernization objectives and carbon emissions reductions.

Duke Energy’s results of operations depend, in significant part, on the extent to which it can implement its business strategy and goals successfully. Duke Energy is working to meet growing and evolving customer energy needs while balancing reliability, costs and other priorities including the need to modernize its fleet and the regulatory constructs. Duke Energy is subject to business, policy, regulatory, technology, economic and competitive uncertainties and contingencies, many of which are beyond its control and may make those objectives difficult to achieve.

Federal or state policies could be enacted that restrict the availability of, and increase the costs associated with the use of, fuels or generation technologies, such as natural gas or nuclear power, that enable Duke Energy to reduce its carbon emissions. For example, Duke Energy anticipates that its nuclear stations in North Carolina and South Carolina will continue to qualify for significant tax incentives in the form of nuclear production tax credits as allowed under the IRA and OBBBA. Nuclear energy is a reliable and clean energy source and nuclear tax incentives allowed, including nuclear production tax credits, are expected to reduce the cost of the energy transition for our customers. If such nuclear production tax credits were eliminated or reduced, it could negatively impact our ability to return the anticipated cost benefits to customers.

Additionally, new EPA rules issued in April 2024 impose stringent GHG emission reduction standards, revised air toxic limits, and wastewater discharge limitations that may impact the achievement of carbon-reductions, and operational timeline and costs associated with certain new and existing generation. Supportive policies may be needed to facilitate the siting and cost recovery of transmission and distribution upgrades needed to accommodate the build out of new generation facilities, including large volumes of renewables and energy storage. Further, the approval of our state regulators will be necessary for the Company to continue to retire existing carbon emitting assets or make investments in new generating capacity. The Company may be constrained by the ability to procure resources or labor needed to build new generation at a reasonable price as well as to construct projects on time. In addition, new technologies that are not yet commercially available or are unproven at utility scale will likely be needed, including carbon capture and sequestration and supporting infrastructure as well as new resources capable of following electric load over long durations such as advanced nuclear, hydrogen and long-duration storage. If these technologies are not developed or are not available at reasonable prices, or if we invest in early stage technologies that are then supplanted by technological breakthroughs, Duke Energy’s ability to achieve net-zero carbon emissions from electricity generation by 2050 at a cost-effective price could be at risk.

Meeting the evolving and growing energy needs of our customers will require continued operation of our existing carbon-free technologies including nuclear and renewables. The transition to and expansion of certain low-carbon resources, such as renewables without cost-effective storage, may challenge our ability to meet customer expectations of reliability and value in a carbon constrained environment, particularly as demand increases. Our nuclear fleet is central to our ability to meet these objectives and customer expectations. We are continuing our work to renew the operating licenses of the 11 reactors we operate at six nuclear stations for an additional 20 years, extending their operating lives to and beyond midcentury. Failure to receive approval from the NRC for the relicensing of any of these reactors could affect our ability to achieve net-zero carbon emissions from electricity generation by 2050.

As a consequence, Duke Energy may not be able to fully implement or realize the anticipated results of its energy modernization, which may have an adverse effect on its financial condition.

REGULATORY, LEGISLATIVE AND LEGAL RISKS

The Duke Energy Registrants’ regulated utility revenues, earnings and results of operations are dependent on state legislation and regulation that affect electric generation, electric and natural gas transmission, distribution and related activities, which may limit their ability to recover costs.

The Duke Energy Registrants’ regulated electric and natural gas utility businesses are regulated on a cost-of-service/rate-of-return basis subject to statutes and regulatory commission rules and procedures of North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Ohio, Tennessee, Indiana and Kentucky. If the Duke Energy Registrants’ regulated utility earnings exceed the returns established by the state utility commissions, retail electric and natural gas rates may be subject to review and possible reduction by the commissions, which may decrease the Duke Energy Registrants’ earnings. Additionally, if regulatory or legislative bodies do not allow recovery of costs incurred in providing service, or do not do so on a timely basis, the Duke Energy Registrants’ results of operations, financial position or cash flows could be negatively impacted. Differences in regulation between jurisdictions with concurrent operations, such as North Carolina and South Carolina in Duke Energy Carolinas' and Duke Energy Progress' service territory, may also result in failure to recover costs.

If legislative and regulatory structures were to evolve in such a way that the Duke Energy Registrants’ exclusive rights to serve their regulated customers were eroded, their earnings could be negatively impacted. Federal and state regulations, laws, commercialization and reduction of costs and other efforts designed to promote and expand the use of EE measures and distributed generation technologies, such as private solar and battery storage, in Duke Energy service territories could reduce recovery of fixed costs in Duke Energy service territories or result in customers leaving the electric distribution system or an increase in customer net energy metering, which allows customers with private solar to receive bill credits for surplus power up to the full retail credit amount. Over time, customer adoption of these technologies or adoption of net metering regulatory structures could result in Duke Energy not being able to fully recover the costs of its investments.

State regulators have approved various mechanisms to stabilize natural gas utility margins, including margin decoupling in North Carolina and rate stabilization in South Carolina. Additionally, certain jurisdictions have established performance incentive mechanisms and revenue decoupling mechanisms for EU&I. Performance incentive mechanisms condition some portion of the respect

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None.

Risk Management

Ensuring the security of Duke Energy’s assets, information and teammates is vital for delivering the essential service on which Duke Energy’s customers and communities depend. In light of the ever-evolving threat landscape and increasing sophistication of threat actor tactics, techniques and procedures, steadfast and advanced cybersecurity and security operations are integral parts of Duke Energy’s enterprise risk management framework. Duke Energy's enterprise risk management framework is used across the enterprise by subject matter experts to identify, assess, monitor and communicate enterprise level risks to the Chief Risk Officer. Duke Energy’s technology and cybersecurity risk management program is integrated into the Company’s overall Enterprise Risk Management program and is composed of three primary lines of defense: (1) the Cybersecurity Incident Response Team (CIRT); (2) the Duke Energy Enterprise Security Team (EST); and (3) internal and external cybersecurity audits. This framework also incorporates the identification and management of risks associated with the Company’s development and use of AI technologies, including AI‑related cybersecurity considerations. Duke Energy monitors the threat landscape to understand both how threat actors are operating currently and how they are developing capabilities using emerging technologies such as AI and quantum computing. Our risk management program is flexible and allows us to pivot as threat actors evolve.

Duke Energy’s first line of defense is the CIRT under the Office of the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO). The CIRT reports up to leaders in the Chief Security and Information Security Office, including the Chief Security and Information Security Officer (CSISO), Managing Director of Cybersecurity and Network Defense, and Director of Cybersecurity Operations, whose cybersecurity backgrounds include many years serving in operational cyber roles, leading incident response, participating in industry engagement, collaborating with federal and local cyber programs, and time analyzing security breaches across the industry. The CIRT oversees an enterprisewide process that identifies, assesses, responds to and resolves cyber incidents, both internal and those associated with the Company’s use of third-party service providers, by defining roles, responsibilities and the process for problem source identification, mitigation, and eradication triggered by a suspected cyber incident. Duke Energy manages cybersecurity threats through its 24/7 Duke Energy Cybersecurity Operations Center (CSOC), which serves as the Company’s central command center for monitoring and coordinating responses to cyberthreats. The CSOC engages in daily information sharing within the utilities industry and with government partners and monitors incoming intelligence and cyber incident impacts. The CSOC assesses the relevant information by assigning a CIRT Heat Map score, which results in CIRT activation if a certain threat level is met. It also results in the assignment of additional roles and responsibilities to enable the cybersecurity leadership and technical teams to collectively and regularly review incident information, score the impact, communicate to leadership, and respond appropriately. Another key component of Duke Energy’s first line of defense against cybersecurity threats is its Third-Party Risk Management (TPRM) process, whereby third parties providing services that meet certain criteria such as storing or transmitting Duke Energy data, hosting an application, or connecting to the Duke Energy network are required to undergo a cybersecurity assessment primarily to ascertain the risk of a third-party’s proposed services to Duke Energy. As part of this process, the Company also evaluates the cybersecurity and data‑protection risks associated with third‑party AI tools and services.

Duke Energy’s second line of defense against cybersecurity threats is the EST, which is led by the CSISO, and actively evaluates, anticipates and tests Duke Energy’s cybersecurity risk level and preventive and risk mitigation controls relative to the enterprisewide risk level and controls. The EST is responsible for infrastructure defense and security controls, performing vulnerability assessments and third-party information security assessments, employee awareness and training programs and security incident management, including oversight of the remediation of cybersecurity incidents. The EST monitors cyber activity and also reports on the status of the Company’s cybersecurity performance and any ongoing remediation efforts to the Company’s CAO, Chief Information Officer (CIO) and CSISO. The CAO and CSISO report these cybersecurity metrics, which use a vulnerability management scoring system and closely align with the National Institute of Standards and Technology Cybersecurity Framework, to the Audit Committee at each regularly scheduled Audit Committee meeting. The EST also employs tools and oversees and challenges Duke Energy’s cybersecurity and technology metrics under its Enterprise Security Risk Register to track, identify and manage risk. The EST also partners with relevant technology and compliance teams to assess controls relating to the Company’s internal use of AI technologies and to monitor emerging AI‑enabled cybersecurity threat vectors in alignment with Duke Energy’s internal AI governance policies. To this end, the EST engages outside expert firms to perform a comprehensive external penetration test each year, performs system and application penetration testing several times throughout the year, and conducts annual exercises simulating the tactics, techniques, and procedures of advanced threat actor groups to test the Company’s ability to prevent penetration, detect suspicious activity and respond to these threats in a timely manner. Lessons learned inform the ongoing improvement of security preventive and mitigating controls and procedures and the results of such testing and threat actor simulations are shared with senior management and the Board of Directors.

Duke Energy also has a senior management committee, the Executive Cybersecurity Oversight Governance Committee (ECOG), which governs enterprise-level cybersecurity risk tolerance. The ECOG, comprised of the Company's Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Chief Administrative Officer (CAO), Chief Legal Officer (CLO) and Chief Generation Officer (CGO) receives monthly updates from the CSISO and provides senior management throughout the Company informational technology and operational technology perspectives, oversight and governance on investments and priorities for the broader cybersecurity organization, in addition to providing final decision oversight on recommendations and response to the ever-challenging cybersecurity threat landscape. The ECOG also is leveraged to supply information and bring transparency to senior management throughout the Company on the increasing threat landscape and the actions, response and road map to combat the threats. In addition, the ECOG provides oversight of enterprise AI governance activities and reviews management’s integration of AI‑related risk considerations into the Company’s cybersecurity and technology‑risk oversight processes.

Internal and external cybersecurity audits provide a third line of defense and independently provide assurance on how effectively the Company, as a whole, manages cybersecurity risk. Each year, Duke Energy Corporate Audit Services (CAS) performs various audits of key Duke Energy security systems and functions, such as third-party risk management programs, to assess whether appropriate security controls are in place and operating effectively. In addition to these internal audits, the Company is subject to a variety of external audits, performed periodically as required by the auditing entity, including external audits performed by the NERC under the Critical Infrastructure Protection framework (CIP), TSA Pipeline Security Directive and FERC Dam Security.

Duke Energy is not currently aware of any potential cybersecurity threats, including as a result of any previous cybersecurity incidents, that have materially affected or are reasonably likely to materially affect the Company, including its business strategy, results of operations or financial condition, however, Duke Energy cannot provide assurance that it will not be materially affected in the future by cybersecurity risks or any future material incidents.

Governance

The Audit Committee has primary oversight of management’s efforts to mitigate cybersecurity and technology risk and respond to cyber incidents. The Audit Committee receives updates throughout the year from the CAO and CSISO on cybersecurity and grid security issues, including compliance with regulations, employee training and drills, at every regularly scheduled Audit Committee meeting, and engages in discussions throughout the year with management on the effectiveness of Duke Energy’s overall cybersecurity program and progress for addressing any identified risks. In 2025, the Audit Committee received three updates and the full Board of Directors received one update on cybersecurity. The Audit Committee also receives periodic updates on Duke Energy’s digital transformation and the operation of, and enhancements to, the Company’s financial systems and business and operational technical systems. These updates include, as appropriate, information regarding the Company’s AI governance practices and management’s evaluation of emerging AI‑related technology and cybersecurity risks. The reviews presented to the Audit Committee are followed with an update to the full Board of Directors by the Chair of the Audit Committee.

In addition, the Operations and Nuclear Oversight Committee (ONOC) of the Board of Directors provides oversight of the nuclear safety and cybersecurity of Duke Energy’s nuclear power program, which is integrated with the companywide cyber protocols, and the Chair of the ONOC reports out to the Board of Directors on such oversight activities. Duke Energy’s nuclear cybersecurity program and associated cybersecurity plan (CSP) were fully implemented in 2017 in accordance with NRC regulation 10 CFR 73.54, “Protection of digital computer and communication systems and networks” and leverage monitoring, testing, drills, audits, assessments, and NRC inspections to continue to validate the effectiveness of the program to protect plant assets from cybersecurity threats.

Moreover, Duke Energy’s processes ensure that the Board of Directors receive contemporaneous reporting on potentially significant cyber events including response, legal obligations, and outreach and notification to regulators and customers when needed, as well as an opportunity to provide guidance to management as appropriate.

The relevant cybersecurity risk expertise of Duke Energy’s management who serve on the ECOG and/or senior management who lead the CIRT and EST is described below. These management teams also oversee the integration of Duke Energy’s AI governance policies into the Company’s broader cybersecurity and technology‑risk management processes.

• The CEO of Duke Energy has gained cybersecurity experience through focusing on transmission and the development of long-term grid strategies and solutions and through a prior role as Chief Distribution Officer, overseeing the safe, reliable, and efficient operation of Duke Energy’s electric distribution systems, and through serving on the board of the Association of Edison Illuminating Companies.

• The EVP and Chief Financial Officer of Duke Energy (CFO) previously served as the Company’s Chief Transformation and Administrative Officer and led the Company’s business transformation through digital innovation, new ways of working and process redesign. In this role, the CFO gained an in-depth understanding of the Company's cybersecurity procedures and key threats and was responsible for the enterprise business services and technology team, including the information and technology organization.

• The EVP, Chief Generation Officer and Enterprise Operational Excellence of Duke Energy has gained cybersecurity experience through being responsible for the safe, efficient and reliable operation of Duke Energy's fleet of nuclear, natural gas, hydro, solar and coal units.

• The CSISO of Duke Energy has over 25 years of experience building and leading security teams within multiple industries. The CSISO holds a Secret Security clearance and is committed to strengthening U.S. critical infrastructure through active collaboration with federal partners at the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Energy, Department of Homeland Security, and state partners including the national guard, law enforcement and universities.

• The CAO of Duke Energy has over 29 years of experience in delivering secure information technology solutions across multiple industries, leading technology delivery for all core business functions. The CAO holds a Secret Security clearance and has active interactions and partnership with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Edison Electric Institute and State Fusion Centers in the jurisdictions that Duke Energy serves.

ELECTRIC UTILITIES AND INFRASTRUCTURE

The following table provides information related to the EU&I's generation stations as of December 31, 2025. The MW displayed in the table below are based on winter capacity for Fossil, Nuclear and Hydro generation stations, and nameplate capacity for Renewable generation stations. Ownership interest in all facilities is 100% unless otherwise indicated.

(a)Jointly owned with North Carolina Municipal Power Agency Number 1, NCEMC and PMPA. Duke Energy Carolinas' ownership is 19.25% of the facility.

(b)Jointly owned with NCEMC. Duke Energy Carolinas' ownership is 87.27% of the facility.

(c)Duke Energy Indiana owns and operates Gibson Station Units 1 through 4 and is a joint owner of unit 5 with WVPA and IMPA. Duke Energy Indiana operates unit 5 and owns 50.05%.

(d)Includes Cayuga Internal Combustion.

(e)Jointly owned with WVPA. Duke Energy Indiana's ownership is 62.5% of the facility.

The following table provides information related to EU&I's electric transmission and distribution properties as of December 31, 2025.

Substantially all of EU&I's electric plant in service is mortgaged under indentures relating to Duke Energy Carolinas’, Duke Energy Progress', Duke Energy Florida's, Duke Energy Ohio’s and Duke Energy Indiana’s various series of First Mortgage Bonds.

GAS UTILITIES AND INFRASTRUCTURE

GU&I owns transmission pipelines and distribution mains that are generally underground, located near public streets and highways, or on property owned by others for which Duke Energy Ohio and Piedmont have obtained the necessary legal rights to place and operate facilities on such property located within the GU&I service territories. The following table provides information related to GU&I's natural gas distribution as of December 31, 2025.

OTHER

Duke Energy owns approximately 7.5 million square feet and leases approximately 1.8 million square feet of corporate, regional and district office space spread throughout its service territories. See Note 11, "Property, Plant and Equipment," for further information.

The litigation matter of NTE Carolinas II, LLC Litigation included in Part 2, Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K, within Note 5, "Commitments and Contingencies" of the Consolidated Financial Statements, is incorporated herein by reference.

For open litigation, unless otherwise noted, Duke Energy cannot predict the outcome or ultimate resolution of these matters.

MTBE Litigation

In December 2017, the state of Maryland filed suit in Baltimore City Circuit Court against Duke Energy Merchants and other defendants alleging contamination of state waters by MTBE leaking from gasoline storage tanks and is seeking an unspecified amount of monetary damages. MTBE is a gasoline additive intended to increase the oxygen levels in gasoline and make it burn cleaner. The case was removed from Baltimore City Circuit Court to federal District Court. In December 2020, the plaintiff and defendants selected 50 focus sites, none of which had any ties to Duke Energy Merchants. In November 2025, Duke Energy Merchants entered into a settlement agreement with the state of Maryland, which included the payment of an immaterial amount to resolve the litigation. Once this matter is dismissed, it will be fully resolved.

The Town of Carrboro Litigation

On December 4, 2024, the town of Carrboro, North Carolina, filed a lawsuit against Duke Energy in the North Carolina Superior Court, Orange County, alleging that Duke Energy and its predecessor companies knew since the late 1960s that fossil fuel emissions could cause global climate changes and engaged in a campaign to conceal the dangers of fossil fuel emissions from the public, regulators, legislators, and others, resulting in a delayed transition away from fossil fuel emissions and worsening climate change. The lawsuit also alleges that Duke Energy misled the public regarding Duke Energy’s support for, and actions toward, transitioning its fossil fuel portfolio to renewable energy. The damages alleged range from road and stormwater-system impacts to increased electricity costs and recurring invasions and interferences from extreme weather events. The lawsuit asserts state-law claims for public nuisance, private nuisance, trespass, negligence, and gross negligence, and is seeking an unspecified amount of monetary damages. The case has been transferred to the North Carolina Business Court. Duke Energy filed a motion to dismiss the litigation based on lack of subject-matter jurisdiction on March 17, 2025, and filed a motion to dismiss based on failure to state a claim on which relief can be granted on May 9, 2025. Oral argument regarding Duke Energy's motions to dismiss was held on September 25, 2025. As requested by the court, supplemental briefing addressing various aspects of causation, including traceability and proximate cause, was filed on October 25, 2025. On February 12, 2026, the court granted Duke Energy's motion to dismiss the litigation based on lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. In light of the dismissal, the court denied the motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim as moot.

Other Proceedings

In addition, from time to time, the Duke Energy Registrants are parties to various legal, environmental or other regulatory proceedings, including in the ordinary course of business. Further, SEC regulations require disclosure of certain environmental matters when a governmental authority is a party to the proceedings and such proceedings involve potential monetary sanctions that the Duke Energy Registrants reasonably believe will exceed a specified threshold. Pursuant to the SEC regulations, the Duke Energy Registrants use a threshold of $1 million for such proceedings.

See Note 4, “Regulatory Matters,” and Note 5, “Commitments and Contingencies,” to the Consolidated Financial Statements, for discussion of certain other legal, environmental and other regulatory proceedings to which the Duke Energy Registrants are a party.

This is not applicable for any of the Duke Energy Registrants.

The common stock of Duke Energy is listed and traded on the NYSE (ticker symbol DUK). As of January 31, 2026, there were 106,127 Duke Energy common stockholders of record. For information on dividends, see the "Dividend Payments" section of Management's Discussion and Analysis.

There is no market for the common equity securities of the Subsidiary Registrants, all of which are directly or indirectly owned by Duke Energy. Duke Energy owns 80.1% of Duke Energy Indiana Holdco, LLC, the holding company of Duke Energy Indiana. The remaining 19.9% minority interest investment is owned by GIC. See Note 2, "Dispositions," to the Consolidated Financial Statements for information on the investment of a minority interest in Duke Energy Florida.

Securities Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans

See Item 12 of Part III within this Annual Report for information regarding Securities Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans.

Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities for Fourth Quarter 2025

There were no repurchases of equity securities during the fourth quarter of 2025.

Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds

None.

Stock Performance Graph

The following performance graph compares the cumulative TSR from Duke Energy Corporation common stock, as compared with the Standard & Poor's 500 Stock Index (S&P 500) and the Philadelphia Utility Index for the past five years. The graph assumes an initial investment of $100 on December 31, 2020, in Duke Energy common stock, in the S&P 500 and in the Philadelphia Utility Index and that all dividends were reinvested. The stockholder return shown below for the five-year historical period may not be indicative of future performance.

NYSE CEO Certification

Duke Energy has filed the certification of its Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 as exhibits to this Annual Report.

This is not applicable for any of the Duke Energy Registrants.

Management’s Discussion and Analysis includes financial information prepared in accordance with GAAP in the U.S., as well as certain non-GAAP financial measures such as adjusted earnings and adjusted EPS discussed below. Generally, a non-GAAP financial measure is a numerical measure of financial performance, financial position or cash flows that excludes (or includes) amounts that are included in (or excluded from) the most directly comparable measure calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP. The non-GAAP financial measures should be viewed as a supplement to, and not a substitute for, financial measures presented in accordance with GAAP. Non-GAAP measures as presented herein may not be comparable to similarly titled measures used by other companies.

The following combined Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations is separately filed by Duke Energy Corporation and its subsidiaries Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC, Progress Energy, Inc., Duke Energy Progress, LLC, Duke Energy Florida, LLC, Duke Energy Ohio, Inc., Duke Energy Indiana, LLC and Piedmont Natural Gas Company, Inc. However, none of the registrants make any representation as to information related solely to Duke Energy or the subsidiary registrants of Duke Energy other than itself.

Management’s Discussion and Analysis should be read in conjunction with the Consolidated Financial Statements and Notes for the years ended December 31, 2025, 2024 and 2023.

See "Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations," in Duke Energy's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024, filed with the SEC on February 27, 2025, for a discussion of variance drivers for the year ended December 31, 2024, as compared to December 31, 2023.

DUKE ENERGY

Duke Energy, an energy company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, operates in the U.S. primarily through its subsidiaries, Duke Energy Carolinas, Duke Energy Progress, Duke Energy Florida, Duke Energy Ohio, Duke Energy Indiana and Piedmont. When discussing Duke Energy’s consolidated financial information, it necessarily includes the results of the Subsidiary Registrants, which along with Duke Energy, are collectively referred to as the Duke Energy Registrants.

Executive Overview

This is a transformative period for the utility industry propelled by energy modernization in support of load growth acceleration and the ongoing shift to more efficient and resilient energy infrastructure. Through our strategic investments and initiatives, we have maintained a key role in this transition, as we strengthen the energy system for our customers. In 2025, we advanced key policy and regulatory activities, executed strategic transactions to support growth and delivered safe and reliable utility services to our customers and communities. We also made progress advancing through the preliminary stages of the approval and construction for significant new generation investments. We continue to operate and maintain our infrastructure in a manner that extends the useful lives for critical assets, while executing a disciplined approach in the prioritization and deployment of capital for new investments. We are proud of the constructive regulatory outcomes that we advocated for our customers as we prepare for growth in energy demand driven by ongoing migration into our attractive service territories, continued electrification and onshoring from domestic industries, data center growth and other investments, including those related to support the broader utilization of AI.

The fundamentals of our business remain strong and allow us to deliver earnings growth and pay common stock dividends in a low-risk, predictable and transparent way. We achieved our 2025 financial commitments by delivering earnings growth above the midpoint of our adjusted earnings guidance range. Duke Energy also paid a cash dividend on its common stock for the 99th consecutive year. We are committed to manage a business portfolio that delivers a reliable and growing dividend and our company remains focused on maintaining reliability, providing value and keeping costs as low as possible to deliver on the commitments made to our customers, communities, employees, investors and other stakeholders.

Financial Results

(a)See Results of Operations below for Duke Energy’s definition of adjusted earnings and adjusted EPS as well as a reconciliation of this non-GAAP financial measure to net income available to Duke Energy and net income available to Duke Energy per basic share.

Duke Energy's 2025 Net Income Available to Duke Energy Corporation (GAAP Reported Earnings) increased primarily due to recovery of growing infrastructure investments to serve customers and growth in our service territories, partially offset by higher operation and maintenance expense, interest expense, property taxes and depreciation on a growing asset base. See “Results of Operations” below for a detailed discussion of the consolidated results of operations and the financial results for each of Duke Energy’s reportable business segments, as well as Other.

2025 Areas of Focus and Accomplishments

Acting on Investment Opportunities. We operate in some of the most attractive jurisdictions in the country and our service territories continue to experience accelerating investment opportunities driven by a deepening economic development pipeline and significant customer growth. The reliable, low-cost power we provide plays a key role in continuing to bring business and job growth to our region. To efficiently fund this growth and the related capital required in the coming years, we entered into two strategic transactions in the third quarter of 2025. In July 2025, we announced the sale of Piedmont’s Tennessee business to Spire Inc. for $2.48 billion. Subject to regulatory approvals, we expect to complete the Piedmont transaction on March 31, 2026. In August 2025, we entered into an investment agreement to receive $6 billion in exchange for an eventual anticipated 19.7% indirect investment in Duke Energy Florida. The transaction is expected to be completed through a series of closings starting in March 2026 through mid-2028. Proceeds from both transactions will support Duke Energy’s expanded capital plan and replaces certain originally planned long-term debt and common equity issuances. Both of these transactions, along with our unwavering focus on operational excellence and value creation, demonstrate our continued ability to meet the unprecedented long-term growth anticipated across our service territories. See Note 2 to the Consolidated Financial Statements, "Dispositions," for further information.

Operational Excellence**.** The reliable and safe operation of our power generating facilities, electric transmission and distribution systems and natural gas infrastructure in our communities continues to be foundational to serving our customers, our financial results and our credibility with stakeholders. Operational excellence is especially critical to successfully navigate effective storm response and to efficiently provide the continuity of service our customers demand, regardless of weather or circumstance. Our workforce and contract partners work hard to prepare for storm season through drills, material planning, call center readiness, contingency planning and customer communications. In such extreme circumstances, our immediate priority is, and always will be, executing the extensive storm preparation and response work to ensure the safe, timely and efficient restoration of service to impacted customers as quickly as

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See “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Results of Operations and Financial Condition – Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk.”