RALEIGH, North Carolina, July 20 (Reuters) – Duke Energy’s
board grew frustrated with then-Progress Energy Chief
Executive William Johnson’s lack of transparency about a
troubled nuclear power plant in the months before their merger
closed, Duke’s lead director said on Friday.

Ann Maynard Gray, the Duke director, told the North Carolina
Utilities Commission that lack of disclosure about the plant and
Johnson’s “controlling” management style prompted Duke’s board
to seek his resignation just minutes after Duke completed the
$18 billion deal that put him in the CEO job.

RALEIGH, North Carolina, July 19 (Reuters) – Duke Energy
Corp’s 20-minute CEO is set to give his side on Thursday
of the saga that saw him ousted from the top job just moments
after the company finalized the $18 billion deal that made it
the nation’s largest utility.

William Johnson, the former head of Progress Energy who was
set to run Duke at the completion of the takeover, will testify
before North Carolina’s utility regulators about the surprise
boardroom drama that saw Duke’s directors vote him out of the
CEO spot earlier this month and return Duke CEO James Rogers to
the position.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – The trial between oil and gas producer Anadarko Petroleum (APC.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and paint materials company Tronox Inc (TROX.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) has been adjourned for one week so the two companies can try to hammer out a settlement of their $25 billion dispute, according to a court filing.

The news lifted shares of both companies with Anadarko climbing as much as 4.2 percent before easing to $68.20, up 2.4 percent. Tronox shares rose about 5 percent to $109.87.

By Ernest Scheyder and Matt Daily

(Reuters) – Duke Energy Corp, under regulatory scrutiny over the abrupt ouster of its CEO, is not expected to be forced to undo its purchase of Progress Energy, but could face a cold reception when it seeks new power rates in North Carolina later this year.

Duke’s board of directors removed former Progress chief Bill Johnson from the top spot just hours after completing the $18 billion acquisition last week and asked former Duke CEO James Rogers to take over.

By Matt Daily and Caroline Humer

(Reuters) – Patriot Coal Corp filed for bankruptcy on Monday, the first U.S. coal producer to seek court protection since prices began to plummet as electricity producers turned to cheaper natural gas.

The company and nearly 100 affiliates were part of the Chapter 11 filing in the U.S. bankruptcy court in Manhattan. Patriot said it had $3.57 billion of assets and $3.07 billion of debts, and has arranged for $802 million of financing to help it continue mining and shipments during the reorganization.

NEW YORK, July 9 (Reuters) – Alcoa Inc’s quarterly
revenue and profit beat Wall Street’s expectations even though
prices for its aluminum are at nearly two-year lows, and it
forecast growing demand in the aerospace and auto sectors.

Chief Executive Klaus Kleinfeld said low metal prices were a
result of the global economic malaise rather than any fault with
market fundamentals.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Alcoa Inc’s quarterly revenue and profit beat Wall Street’s expectations even though prices for its aluminum are at nearly two-year lows, and it forecast growing demand in the aerospace and auto sectors.

Chief Executive Klaus Kleinfeld said low metal prices were a result of the global economic malaise rather than any fault with market fundamentals.

NEW YORK, July 9 (Reuters) – Alcoa Inc’s quarterly
revenue and profit beat Wall Street’s expectations even though
prices for its aluminum are at nearly two-year lows, and it
forecast growing demand in the aerospace and auto sectors.

Chief Executive Klaus Kleinfeld said low metal prices were a
result of the global economic malaise rather than any fault with
market fundamentals.

NEW YORK, June 27 (Reuters) – Exxon Mobil CEO Rex
Tillerson said on Wednesday that efforts to address climate
change should focus on engineering methods to adapt to shifting
weather patterns and rising sea levels rather than trying to
eliminate use of fossil fuels.

Tillerson said humans have long adapted to change, and
governments should create policies to cope with the Earth’s
rising temperatures.

June 27 (Reuters) – U.S natural gas prices are too low to
allow the energy industry to cover the cost of finding and
producing new supplies, the head of top producer Exxon Mobil
said on Wednesday.

Record production, thanks to new technologies that tap
natural gas trapped in shale rock formations, pushed U.S.
natural gas prices to 10-year lows below $2 per million British
thermal units (mmBtu) in April, though prices have since
rebounded.