CHARLOTTE, NC -- Duke Energy plans to team up with three cities in the Carolinas to test putting existing power lines underground.
The North Carolina Utilities Commission gave Duke permission last month to do the test so it can determine the feasibility of a larger-scale conversion.
The commission has estimated it would cost $41 billion and take 25 years to put all of North Carolina's overhead power lines underground.
The issue comes up whenever a major winter storm knocks down tree branches and power lines and people are without power for days or even a week.
The city of Greenville, S.C., has been considering whether to spend $12.5 million over the next 10 years to bury 30 miles of Duke's lines since a 2005 ice storm left parts of the city without electricity for a week.
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