Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) recently announced plans to expand and accelerate its new universal solar generation plan.
FPL intends to build eight new solar power plants, with over 2.5 million solar panels by early 2018.
Each new solar plant will have a capacity of 74.5 megawatts - all eight plants will generate a sum of almost 600 megawatts. This capacity expansion can power about 120,000 additional homes.
"We have been working hard to drive down the costs of adding solar so we can deliver even more zero-emissions energy to all of our customers,” said Eric Silagy, FPL president and CEO.
“As the first company to build solar power generation cost effectively in Florida, we are proud to continue leading the advancement of affordable clean energy infrastructure. We have proven that it's possible to cut emissions and deliver reliable service while keeping electric bills low for our customers."
FPL stated to have saved customers over $8.6 billion in fossil fuel expenses while preventing 108 million tons in carbon emissions. The company hopes adding the new plants will contribute to a cleaner energy infrastructure and help phase out fossil fuel-burning plants.
"An additional eight new solar energy centers is a major step toward reducing carbon emissions and saving water, benefitting the earth and all Floridians,” said Eric Draper, executive director of Audubon Florida, a non-profit environmental organization.
Construction of the new plants will begin spring 2017, employing up to 200 to 250 people on each site during peak construction. The sites will be located across Florida, with three already designated to be in Alachua, DeSoto and Putnam counties.
For more information, visit the FPL Website.