Exhibit
        31(a)
  CERTIFICATION
   I, Robert B. McGehee, certify
        that:
  1. I
        have
        reviewed this quarterly report on Form 10-Q of Progress Energy,
        Inc.;
  2. Based
        on
        my knowledge, this quarterly report does not contain any untrue statement
        of a
        material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements
        made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made,
        not
        misleading with respect to the period covered by this quarterly
        report;
  3. Based
        on
        my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included
        in this quarterly report, fairly present in all material respects the financial
        condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of,
        and
        for, the periods presented in this quarterly report;
  4. The
        registrant's other certifying officer and I are responsible for establishing
        and
        maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act
        Rules
        13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) and internal control over financial reporting (as
        defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f))  for the registrant
        and we have:
  a) designed
        such
        disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and
        procedures to be designed under our supervision,  to ensure that material
        information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries,
        is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during
        the
        period in which this quarterly report is being prepared;
 b) designed
        such
        internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control
        over
        financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable
        assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation
        of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally
        accepted accounting principles;
 c) evaluated
        the
        effectiveness of the registrant's disclosure controls and procedures and
        presented in this quarterly report our conclusions about the effectiveness
        of
        the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered
        by
        this quarterly report based on such evaluation; and
 d) disclosed
        in
        this quarterly report any change in the registrant’s internal control over
        financial reporting that occurred during the registrant’s most recent fiscal
        quarter (the registrant’s first fiscal quarter in the case of this quarterly
        report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially
        affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting;
        and
  5. The
        registrant's other certifying officer and I have disclosed, based on our
        most
        recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, to the
        registrant's auditors and the audit committee of registrant's board of
        directors:
  a) all
        significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation
        of
        internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to
        adversely affect the registrant's ability to record, process, summarize and
        report financial information; and
 b) any
        fraud,
        whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who
        have a
        significant role in the registrant's internal control over financial
        reporting.
   Date:
                May 9, 2006
            By:
/s/
                Robert B. McGeheeRobert
                B. McGeheeChairman
                and Chief Executive Officer