Technology and Innovation
1927
The company bought 20 acres of land to develop a demonstration farm to convince potential residents that the marshy soil could be transformed into profitable farmland. The flourishing property included livestock and 150 varieties of plants.
1929
The company hired door-to-door salespeople to sell electric appliances and created display rooms at their local offices. Every employee became a salesperson, encouraging customers to purchase vacuums, coffee makers, refrigerators and toasters.
1971
FPL began its Wise Energy Management Program, one of the company's earliest energy efficiency campaigns.
1979
With oil prices skyrocketing, FPL began exploring alternative fuels, including a mixture of coal and oil, coal and water, and solar power.
1981-1983
The company established its Quality Improvement Program to improve day-to-day operations with problem-solving and teamwork. By the end of 1983, the program was considered a success and its methods became a model for companies abroad, including in Japan, Brazil and Sweden.
2010
FPL received the highest honor from the Southeastern Electric Exchange for its construction of the largest solar photovoltaic power plant in the United States.
2011
The company began the first of several modernizations of its 1960s oil- and gas-fired power plants, including Riviera Beach, Cape Canaveral and Port Everglades.
2011
The Martin Next Generation Solar Energy Center was brought online. It was the first hybrid solar facility in the world to combine a solar-thermal field with a combined-cycle natural gas power plant.
2012
NextEra Energy Resources, together with PG&E, opened the 78.2-MW repowered Vasco Wind Energy Center near San Francisco, California.
2013
NextEra Energy completed the largest multi-state nuclear uprate project in U.S. history. The multi-billion dollar expansion at St. Lucie, Turkey Point and Point Beach involved six separate nuclear units.
2013
The company completed a massive grid modernization project in Florida, including the installation of more than 4.5 million smart meters and deployment of smart grid technology.
2013
FPL completed its first commercial energy-efficient streetlight installation project with the installation of 166 LED streetlights in West Palm Beach’s Coleman Park neighborhood.
2013
FPL completed its five-year, multi-billion-dollar project to upgrade its Turkey Point and St. Lucie nuclear power plants, adding more than 500 new MW of clean energy capacity.
2015
FPL opened its new, state-of-the-art Power Delivery Diagnostic Center, a high-tech smart grid technology center designed to leverage advanced smart grid technology to better manage the electric system and improve reliability.
2016
FPL’s Automated Fault Mapping Prediction System project was recognized with an Award of Excellence by the International Smart Grid Action Network (ISGAN). This innovative smart grid technology propelled FPL to have service reliability nearly 50 percent better than the national average.
2016
FPL launched an innovative energy storage pilot project in conjunction with the White House summit on scaling renewable energy and storage with smart markets. The project focused on strengthening the electric grid by installing and testing several different types of advanced battery systems under real-life conditions.
2016
FPL’s St. Lucie and Turkey Point nuclear power plants were recognized with the industry’s highest award for innovation – the Nuclear Energy Institute’s 2016 top innovation award. FPL was chosen for pioneering a unique program that significantly improves plant performance.
2017
NextEra Energy Resources and Sonoma Clean Power launched the Golden Hills North Wind Energy Center in California, a repowering project that replaced 283 30-year old wind turbines with just 20 new 2.3-MW GE turbines capable of generating even more power with twice the efficiency.
2017
FPL received the prestigious AEIC Achievement Award from the Association of Edison Illuminating Companies (AEIC) for a technology breakthrough in anticipating intermittent power failures and improving the company's ability to take preventative action.
2017
FPL broke ground on its new state-of-the-art distribution control center, a category 5-rated facility that was designed to ensure greater everyday reliability and more efficient communication, collaboration and response during emergency restoration events.
2018
FPL brought online a new solar-plus-storage system that is believed to be the first in the country to fully integrate battery technology with a major solar power plant in a way that increases the plant's overall energy output.
2019
FPL launches an electric vehicle charging program, FPL EVolution, to drive electrification of Florida transportation.
2020
NextEra Energy Resources commissions the first battery energy storage system in Oklahoma — Rush Springs Storage. It is co-located with the Rush Springs Wind Energy Center near Marlow, Oklahoma. The paired facilities represent a pilot program to help NextEra Energy Resources and the regional grid operator, Southwest Power Pool, learn how storage can both optimize the operations of a wind facility and improve the reliability of the larger electric grid.
2021
FPL installed the first battery components at Manatee Energy Storage Center, the world’s largest solar-powered battery storage facility. The center is expected to have a 409-MW capacity, delivering 900 MW-hours of energy – enough to power approximately 329,000 homes for more than two hours.
2022
NextEra Energy sets goal to achieve zero-carbon emissions by no later than 2045.
2022
FPL makes history launching first-ever fixed-wing drone, FPLAir One. The drone is capable of flying up to 1,000 miles, capturing high-quality images and video of infrastructure.
