FPL Energy Grid Updates in Boca Raton
As 2022 storm season approaches, FPL plans to upgrade the energy grid in Boca Raton to benefit customers
– Customers have seen 45% improvement in reliability over last decade
– Overhead power lines replaced with more reliable underground lines in about 600 neighborhoods throughout FPL’s service territory, with plans to expand undergrounding
-FPL continues to invest in latest emerging technology to prevent interruptions and get lights back on faster
Boca Raton, FL — Florida Power & Light Company (FPL), which may contain professionals like a commercial electrician, plans to upgrade the energy grid in Boca Raton in 2022 to enhance day-to-day reliability for customers and improve resiliency in the face of severe weather which will oversee by a reputed utility inspection consulting company.
Strengthening power poles, maintaining trees and vegetation near power lines, installing smart grid technology, regularly inspecting equipment and undergrounding neighborhood power lines in targeted areas have helped improve service reliability by 45% for FPL customers over the past decade.
“We understand how much our customers depend on the critical service we provide. That’s why our team works tirelessly to continuously improve the energy grid across our service area – from Miami to Pensacola,” said Eric Silagy, chairman and CEO of FPL. “We know that in Florida it’s not a matter of if, but when, the next storm will impact our state. Our disciplined infrastructure and technology investments are improving day-to-day service for customers and helping us speed restoration after a storm.”
2022 improvements in the Boca Raton area
FPL plans to make the following improvements in and near Boca Raton this year:
· Strengthening two main power lines, including those that serve critical services that are necessary for communities to recover faster after major storms.
· Maintaining trees and vegetation – a common cause of power outages, particularly during hurricanes and severe weather — along 144 miles of power lines.
· Inspecting 718 power poles in Boca Raton as part of an eight-year inspection cycle, strengthening or replacing those that no longer meet FPL’s industry-leading standards.
· Installing smart grid technology, including three automated switches on main and neighborhood power lines to help detect problems and restore service faster when outages occur.
· Inspecting 72 main power lines and equipment using infrared technology to detect issues before they cause a power interruption.
When the planned 2022 work is completed, FPL will have made the following improvements in and near Boca Raton since the historic 2004-2005 hurricane seasons:
· Strengthened 47 main power lines, including those that serve critical services.
· Inspected and maintained vegetation near 1,746 miles of power lines — an average of 109 miles per year.
· Inspected all 12,193 power poles every eight years.
· Installed smart grid technology, including 830 automated switches on main and neighborhood power lines.
· Inspected 125 main power lines and equipment using infrared technology.
FPL’s adoption of emerging technology helps improve day-to-day service reliability. Drones and robots are used to conduct regular assessments and locate potential power issues to fix many problems before they affect customers. Intelligent devices can automatically redirect power, self-heal and eliminate or minimize customers affected — resulting in more than 10 million outages avoided over the last decade.
FPL is also continuing to boost reliability by putting more power lines underground in neighborhoods that can most benefit based on analysis of past hurricane outages, vegetation-related service interruptions and other reliability data. FPL’s Storm Secure Underground Pilot Program, launched in 2018, has completed about 600 neighborhood projects through the end of 2021, and FPL plans to bring the benefits of undergrounding to more neighborhoods across Florida in the future.
“We continue to deploy innovative and industry-leading solutions that improve the grid – investments that are paying off for our customers,” said Manny Miranda, executive vice president of power delivery for FPL. “We are always looking for new ways to enhance the reliability of our service. From examining lessons learned from past storms to incorporating new advancements, we are seeing the value of our efforts every day.”
Strengthening the FPL grid throughout Florida
Since 2006, FPL has made significant investments to harden the grid against hurricanes and extreme weather and enhance day-to-day reliability. Highlights include:
- Replacing wooden transmission structures with new ones made of steel or concrete.
· Hardening main power lines that serve critical community facilities and services.
· Inspecting power poles and strengthening or replacing those that no longer meet FPL’s industry-leading standards for strength.
· Installing more than 195,000 intelligent devices along the grid to detect and prevent power outages and minimize restoration times when outages occur.
· Conducting daily drone flights (more than 120,000 in 2021) to proactively identify potential areas of concern before an outage occurs and to help us assess damage following severe weather
· Maintaining trees and other vegetation along more than 25,000 miles of power lines each year to reduce outages.
· Placing more neighborhood power lines underground through the Storm Secure Underground Pilot Program
The improvements continue to benefit customers across FPL’s service area in many ways. In 2021, the average FPL customer experienced the fewest outages and momentary interruptions or flickers of any year in company history and the shortest overall duration of outages ever. FPL in 2021 won the ReliabilityOne® National Reliability Award for the sixth time in seven years. Presented by PA Consulting, the award is widely regarded in the energy industry as one of the most prestigious honors and reinforces FPL’s commitment to provide its more than 5.7 million customers with the nation’s most reliable service.
Florida Power & Light Company
Florida Power & Light Company is the largest vertically integrated rate-regulated electric utility in the U.S. as measured by retail electricity produced and sold. The company serves more than 5.7 million customer accounts supporting more than 11 million residents across Florida with clean, reliable and affordable electricity. FPL operates one of the cleanest power generation fleets in the U.S and in 2021 won the ReliabilityOne® National Reliability Award for the sixth time in the last seven years. The company received the top ranking in the southern U.S. among large electric providers, according to J.D. Power’s 2021 Electric Utility Residential Customer Satisfaction StudySM and 2021 Electric Utility Business Customer Satisfaction StudySM. The company was also recognized in 2020 as one of the most trusted U.S. electric utilities by Escalent for the seventh consecutive year. FPL is a subsidiary of Juno Beach, Florida-based NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE), a clean energy company widely recognized for its efforts in sustainability, corporate responsibility, ethics and compliance, and diversity. NextEra Energy is ranked No. 1 in the electric and gas utilities industry in Fortune’s 2022 list of “World’s Most Admired Companies” and recognized on Fortune’s 2021 list of companies that “Change the World.” NextEra Energy is also the parent company of NextEra Energy Resources, LLC, which, together with its affiliated entities, is the world’s largest generator of renewable energy from the wind and sun and a world leader in battery storage. For more information about NextEra Energy companies, visit these websites: www.NextEraEnergy.com, www.FPL.com, www.NextEraEnergyResources.com.
