Piedmont Natural Gas Initiates Fiscal Year 2010 Earnings Guidance

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Nov. 2 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Charlotte based Piedmont
Natural Gas (NYSE: PNY) is initiating its earnings guidance for the fiscal
year ending October 31, 2010 in the range of $1.90 to $2.00 per diluted share.

The guidance for fiscal year 2010 reflects:

-- A one time gain of $0.42 per share on the previously announced sale of
one-half of the Company's 30% ownership interest in SouthStar Energy
Services (SouthStar) to AGL Resources. The transaction is scheduled
to
close on January 1, 2010,

-- Earnings sharing from SouthStar in the Company's first fiscal quarter
at
the current rate of approximately 25%. The remainder of the fiscal
year
would reflect the new ownership and earnings sharing arrangement of
15%,

-- Margin growth from gross customer additions of 1.3% in the Company's
North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee service areas,

-- A $1.1 million annual margin increase effective November 1, 2009
pursuant to a settlement agreement filed in the Company's 2009 South
Carolina Rate Stabilization Act proceeding,

-- The continuation of the Company's business process improvement
programs
offset by approximately $2.0 million in expenses related to a
corporate
repositioning program to update the Company's brand, internet web site
and associated sales and marketing communication channels for its
customers, shareholders and the public, and an estimated $2.5 million
increase in pension expense under FAS 87,

-- Utility capital expenditures of $195.4 million, including $46.3
million
for pipeline infrastructure to serve two gas-fired power generation
projects in North Carolina that were deferred from last year's capital
program at the request of the customers. No capital expenditures will
be made in fiscal year 2010 related to the Company's deferred Robeson
LNG storage project. Capital expenditures for the recently announced
$85 million Wayne County project with Progress Energy will not affect
capital expenditures until fiscal years 2011 and 2012,

-- A common stock repurchase program to permanently reduce shares
outstanding by one million shares. The Company's typical program of
making open market share purchases to satisfy requirement for its
Dividend Reinvestment Program and other stock based programs will also
continue, and

-- No new long-term debt issuance during fiscal year 2010.

Forward Looking Statement

This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements are
based on management's current expectations and information currently available
and are believed to be reasonable and are made in good faith. However, the
forward-looking statements are subject to future events, risks, uncertainties
and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from
those projected in the statements. Factors that may make the actual results
differ from anticipated results include, but are not limited to, weather
conditions, rate of customer growth, the cost and availability of natural gas,
competition from other energy providers, new legislation and regulations and
application of existing laws and regulations, economic and capital market
conditions, the cost and availability of labor and materials and other
uncertainties, all of which are difficult to predict and some of which are
beyond our control. For these reasons, you should not rely on these
forward-looking statements when making investment decisions. The words
"expect," "believe," "project," "anticipate," "intend," "should," "could,"
"will," "assume," "can," "estimate," "forecast," "future," "indicate,"
"outlook," "plan," "predict," "seek," "target," "would," and variations of
such words and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking
statements. Forward-looking statements are only as of the date they are made
and we do not undertake any obligation to update publicly any forward-looking
statement, either as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
More information about the risks and uncertainties relating to these
forward-looking statements may be found in Piedmont's latest Forms 10-K and
10-Q, which are available on the SEC's website at http://www.sec.gov.

About Piedmont Natural Gas

Piedmont Natural Gas is an energy services company primarily engaged in the
distribution of natural gas to more than one million residential, commercial
and industrial utility customers in North Carolina, South Carolina and
Tennessee, including 61,000 customers served by municipalities who are
wholesale customers. Our subsidiaries are invested in joint venture,
energy-related businesses, including unregulated retail natural gas marketing,
interstate natural gas storage and intrastate natural gas transportation.
Additional information about Piedmont is available on the Internet at
http://www.piedmontng.com.

SOURCE Piedmont Natural Gas

Investors: Nick Giaimo, +1-704-731-4952, nicholas.giaimo@piedmontng.com; or
Media, David Trusty, +1-704-731-4391, david.trusty@piedmontng.com