More than 5.5 million homes and businesses in Florida remained without power at midday Tuesday after Hurricane Irma plowed through the state. The top to return to homes was underway in most areas outside the storm-ravaged lower Florida Keys.
Roads became clogged and fuel supplies strained as more than 1 million people were told to find shelter inland, upstate or in neighboring states in advance of massive Hurricane Irma, which will blanket most of Florida this weekend.
It’s a sunny future for Florida Power & Light Co., as construction is now well underway on all eight of the utility’s planned solar power plants. New 74.5-megawatt solar power plants, with 2.5 million panels offering a joint capacity of 600 MW, are on track for completion by early 2018, making it one of the largest solar expansions ever in the eastern U.S. Once completed, the plants will contribute enough low-emissions energy to the FPL grid to power nearly 120,000…
On a sunny day in Florida, I watched the American flag rise and fly over hundreds of acres of solar cells. It was an amazing experience to think the million panels I was looking at in Manatee County were replacing energy from conventional fuel combustion plants. Yet this solar field feeding directly into the power grid was not using any water nor emitting pollution. I could not have been more excited. In recent years, Florida has increasingly lived up to its…
Florida Power & Light announced Monday that it will build another 1,500 megawatts of solar power plants over the next 7 years. The new power plants are in addition to the eight new solar facilities expected to come online by early 2018 and FPL said the new plants could save customers more than $500 million. The roadmap for the new facilities was filed with the Public Service Commission Monday as part of the company’s 2017-2026 Ten Year Site Plan, which…
A Florida Senate committee unanimously passed a proposal Tuesday giving electric utilities the opportunity to invest in natural-gas reserves and recoup money from customers. The legislation would allow any Florida power company using natural gas for 65 percent or more of its electricity generation to explore out-of-state for natural gas using residential ratepayer’s money. The bill from Fernandina Beach Republican Aaron Bean bill (SB 1238) is a response to the Florida Supreme Court’s rejection last May to Florida Power & Light’s program of investing ratepayers money…
Florida Power & Light announced Wednesday it would roll out eight new solar power plants across the state over the next year. “With the support of communities across the state, we are advancing smart, affordable clean energy infrastructure while keeping customer bills low,” said Eric Silagy, FPL president and CEO. “On a per-megawatt basis, these eight new plants will be the lowest-cost solar ever built in Florida and some of the lowest-cost solar ever built in America. Our steadfast commitment…
