As an investor, what can I expect from this merger?

We expect the financial strength of the new Duke Energy to deliver steady earnings-per-share (EPS) growth. Our targeted earnings will be $2 per ongoing diluted share in 2007, our first full year as a combined company, and 4 to 6 percent ongoing annual EPS growth thereafter. Our diverse portfolio of assets and operations, both regulated and nonregulated, will enable us to sustain that growth. With the merger complete, we are resuming our stock buyback program and will consider increasing the dividend, based on our target payout ratio of 70 percent.

Farmer, conservationist and Duke Energy shareholder Ernie Averett. The Averett family has owned and operated Flatwood Farms in Oxford, N.C., for seven generations. Averett began investing in Duke Energy more than 10 years ago to smooth out his seasonal income with reliable dividends.