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Here Comes the Sun: Solar Industry Brings Clean Energy To Florida
By Thomas Ehlers, Staff Writer, Photo courtesy of Florida Power & Light
There’s no shortage of sunbeams in the Sunshine State, and power companies across the state are taking advantage of those rays.
Valued as a $36.3 billion industry in the U.S. in 2022, the solar market is growing, and Florida is ranked third by cumulative solar capacity in the country, according to statistics from the Solar Energy Industries Association.
Charles Fritts created the first solar cell in 1883, and his invention started a boom of innovation and research into solar power. Today, solar cells convert at an energy conversion rate of 15 to 20% – much higher than Fritts’ efficiency of 1 to 2%. Thanks to several initiatives and projects, solar is helping power communities across Florida.
An industry advanced
Florida Power & Light (FPL) first introduced solar energy to its portfolio in 2009, completing the DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center. At the time, it was the nation’s largest solar installation of its kind, spanning 90,000 solar panels across 235 acres of land to produce 42,000 Megawatt hours (MWh) annually. FPL spokesperson Marshall Hastings noted the industry advances that have taken place in a decade and a half.
“We can now make on the same amount of land, with fewer panels, the same amount of energy if not more,” he said. “The footprint isn’t changing for us, but the technological advancements that we’ve seen have been really exciting. That’s allowed us to reduce the number of panels, and we see more efficient panels.”
In 2023, FPL brought 13 new solar energy centers online across Florida, adding to the more than 60 solar projects it has statewide. Ten of those projects went online in February 2023, collectively able to generate 745 Megawatts (MW) and power 150,000 homes. The growth of solar in Florida parallels the state’s rapid growth in population, providing power companies the opportunity to anticipate future strains on the power grid.
“Florida is a massively-growing state, so it is really important to us to be ahead of that curve and make sure we are planning years in advance to ensure we can meet the growing demand,” Hastings said. “Solar is a great avenue to do that – to meet the growing demand but also provide reliability and resiliency to our customers.”
FPL ensures solar power is constantly added to the grid with stations across the state; Hastings noted that just because a thunderstorm impacts sunshine in Miami, stations in Pensacola can still contribute. These facilities have no need for fuel, water or additional personnel, and each provides more than 200 jobs during its construction, according to Hastings. Solar projects limit developmental and ground impacts during and after assembly, limiting environmental impacts.
Another positive aspect of solar power is the elimination of fuel costs. Since 2009, the company has saved its customers $900 million – including $375 million in 2022 – in fuel costs, which experienced price hikes over the past several years.
“In 2021, the fuel market and the natural gas market (were) very volatile,” Hastings said. “Prices spiked, and that ended up being costs that are passed on to customers. The company isn’t making any money off of fuel costs; that’s a pass through expense.
“By investing in solar energy, we can reduce the amount of national gas we need to purchase, and in turn, help our customers save money.”
Across the state, these solar energy centers generate hundreds of thousands of dollars in tax revenues, while preventing impacts on public services that happen with other forms of energy production. Municipalities are able to earmark funds for public works, schools and other projects from these tax revenues, leading to partnerships between FPL and the areas it serves.
“We’re really proud of the relationships we’ve built in the communities where (solar projects) operate in,” Hastings said. “It’s important for us to be ingrained in the community, work with the community, and we see these sites have benefits for the communities and our customers.”
New tech for new power
Sustainability in energy might be the finish line, but creativity is the vehicle for one Duke Energy Project. In December 2023, the company debuted its first floating solar pilot project in Florida, recapturing water space to harness electricity.
The Hines Energy Complex in Bartow was commissioned as a thermal project using a combined cycle gas turbine in 1999, but Duke Energy introduced a bifacial solar panel to an existing cooling pond in the winter to help the company better understand capabilities of innovative clean energy technologies.
The solar array of 1,872 solar panels floats on the 1,200 acre pond, creating power as the pond cools the power plant. Its bifacial solar panels absorb light from both sides, resulting in 10% to 20% more power to be produced than typical monofacial solar panels. The almost-1 megawatt array will produce enough electricity to power around 100 homes, all through zero-carbon means.
This process is part of Duke Energy’s more than $2 billion investment in solar infrastructure. Across the state, the company generates about 1,500 MW of emission-free generation through its approximately 5 million solar panels in Florida, while its 10-year site plan aims to bring more than 4,500 megawatts of utility scale solar generating capacity online by 2032.
Polk County’s floating solar project is one of 23 regulated solar projects Duke Energy Florida maintains in the state, including the John Hopkins Middle School canopy project. The solar canopy provides power when the school serves as a special needs emergency shelter, such as during extreme weather events. Other projects include solar canopies, traditional solar projects and facilities with battery storage.
These projects align with several initiatives Duke Energy offers across the state. With over 5,000 customers in 2022, the Clean Energy Connection program allows customers to buy into a subscription to upkeep the solar power grid, which then gives them bill credits for the amount of energy their subscription share produces. Organizations like Wendy’s and the St. Petersburg campus of the University of South Florida currently participate, as customers can see an escalation in credit rate after three years of subscription.
Households who participate in programs including Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Medicaid, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), and SNAP-EBT are eligible for enrolled income-qualified benefits. In these cases, monthly credits will be greater than program fees, allowing lower-class households the opportunity to participate and enjoy the benefits of clean energy.
More benefits
Thousands more Floridians will be enjoying those benefits as the Florida Municipal Power Agency (FMPA) completes its three-phase Florida Municipal Solar Project (FMSP).
So far, 30,000 homes are already using the 150 megawatts of solar power generated by Phase One of the project, which comprises the Taylor Creek solar farm in Orange County and Harmony Creek solar farm in Osceola County.
“FMPA’s mission is to provide low cost, reliable and clean power to our members,” said Jacob Williams, CEO and general manager of FMPA.
“We know from surveying our member cities that their customers have an interest in solar power, but they want to keep their power costs to stay very low. Investing in a manageable number of solar farms is the most cost effective way to provide solar energy to our members and their customers, costing roughly a third the expense of rooftop solar.”
The 150-MW Phase Two of this project includes the Rice Creek Solar Farm in Putnam County and the Whistling Duck Solar Farm in Levy County, expected to finish in August 2024 and July 2025, respectively. Four additional solar farms located in Columbia, Levy and Bradford counties make up Phase Three, with two anticipated completions by the end of 2025 and two more in 2026.
By the end of construction, FMPA’s three-phase plan will be able to generate nearly 600 megawatts of solar energy from the more than 1.8 million solar panels spread across the eight solar farms. The project’s power will be used by 20 or more municipal utility companies, and solar will reflect 8% of FMPA’s total energy output by 2027.
Solar energy isn’t only an initiative that lowers costs, but it’s an avenue that allows FMPA to lessen its environmental impact. Alongside nuclear projects – which generate energy to 370,000 customers and make up 5% of FMPA’s energy needs – FMPA holds initiatives to eliminate coal generation and replace it with lower-cost and lower emitting natural gas generation and solar generation.
By 2027, these initiatives will reduce carbon dioxide emissions rates by 50% from 2005 levels.
