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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) (Charlotte, North Carolina) recently said its Florida utility reached an agreement with "consumer representatives and business groups" to advance Duke's clean-energy presence in the state. Industrial Info is tracking $1.17 billion worth of active and planned projects from Duke in Florida, including the construction of a solar plant and renewable hydrogen unit.
The proposed agreement, if approved by the Florida Public Service Commission (FPSC), would allow Duke Energy Florida to build 12 new solar plants between 2025 and 2027--which would add 900 megawatts (MW) of solar capacity to the state grid--and continue to invest in other renewable energy technologies.
The proposed agreement includes continued grid modernization and power plant enhancements, among other provisions. "This collaborative agreement will allow Duke Energy Florida to continue making investments to reduce outages, shorten response times, meet future energy demands, increase clean, solar generation and explore innovative technologies to generate cost savings for its 2 million customers in Florida," the company said in a press release.
Duke Energy Florida developed the agreement with the state's Office of Public Counsel, which provides legal representation for consumers in utility issues, and other parties such as the Florida Retail Federation, steelmaker Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE) (Charlotte, North Carolina) and PCS Phosphate Company Incorporated, a subsidiary of fertilizer company Nutrien (NYSE:NTR) (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan).
According to Duke's first-quarter 2024 earnings presentation, the company is planning major capital investments from 2025 to 2027 in Florida that include $3.3 billion for transmission and distribution and $1.5 billion for new solar generation.
Construction of the 74.9-MW, $131 million Mule Creek Renewable Energy Center in Bay County, in the northwest portion of the state, is expected to wrap up around the end of the year. The solar power plant will utilize more than 150,000 photovoltaic (PV) panels from First Solar Incorporated (NASDAQ:FSLR) (Tempe, Arizona) to generate what would be enough carbon-free electricity to power the equivalent of about 23,000 homes at peak output. M.A. Mortenson Company (Minneapolis, Minnesota) is providing engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services for the project. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Power Project Database can click here to read the project report.
Industrial Info is tracking 19 solar plants attributed to Duke in Florida that are operational, in development or under construction. Subscribers to the GMI Plant Database can click here for a full list.
The most recent data from the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), through first-quarter 2024, shows Florida ranks third among U.S. states in terms of installed solar capacity (16,640 MW), trailing California (48,482 MW) and Texas (32,143 MW). Florida's installed solar capacity accounts for roughly 7% of the state's electricity mix, according to the SEIA.
Duke aims to add other renewable sources of power generation in Florida, including "green hydrogen," which is hydrogen produced from water via electrolysis. A related project is the $100 million addition of a green hydrogen system in DeBary, in Volusia County, which is connected to Duke's 74.5-MW DeBary solar plant. According a 2023 press release announcing the project, which is expected to wrap up in the fourth quarter, it is the first demonstration project in the U.S. "to successfully create clean energy using an end-to-end system to produce, store and combust 100% green hydrogen."
First, the system will utilize solar power from the DeBary plant to power two 1-MW proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzer units from Plug Power (NASDAQ:PLUG) (Latham, New York). Electrolysis units separate water molecules into oxygen and hydrogen atoms. Then, the system will release the resulting oxygen into the atmosphere, according to Duke, while the green hydrogen would be delivered to nearby, reinforced containers for safe storage.
During times of high energy demand, the system will deliver the stored hydrogen to a GE Vernova combustion turbine that will be upgraded to run on a blend of natural gas and hydrogen or up to 100% hydrogen. GE Vernova was recently spun off from General Electric as the company's gas power and renewable energy business. GE will continue trading under the company name GE Aerospace (NYSE:GE) (Boston, Massachusetts), another business unit that GE recently spun off.
Subscribers can click here to read more information on the hydrogen project.
Earlier this year, Duke boosted its five-year capital investment plan to $73 billion, an $8 billion increase over its previous guidance. For more information on this and other projects from the company, see February 9, 2024, article - Duke Narrows Focus to Regulated Growth, Ups Five-Year Capex.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 Trillion (USD).
The proposed agreement, if approved by the Florida Public Service Commission (FPSC), would allow Duke Energy Florida to build 12 new solar plants between 2025 and 2027--which would add 900 megawatts (MW) of solar capacity to the state grid--and continue to invest in other renewable energy technologies.
The proposed agreement includes continued grid modernization and power plant enhancements, among other provisions. "This collaborative agreement will allow Duke Energy Florida to continue making investments to reduce outages, shorten response times, meet future energy demands, increase clean, solar generation and explore innovative technologies to generate cost savings for its 2 million customers in Florida," the company said in a press release.
Duke Energy Florida developed the agreement with the state's Office of Public Counsel, which provides legal representation for consumers in utility issues, and other parties such as the Florida Retail Federation, steelmaker Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE) (Charlotte, North Carolina) and PCS Phosphate Company Incorporated, a subsidiary of fertilizer company Nutrien (NYSE:NTR) (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan).
According to Duke's first-quarter 2024 earnings presentation, the company is planning major capital investments from 2025 to 2027 in Florida that include $3.3 billion for transmission and distribution and $1.5 billion for new solar generation.
Construction of the 74.9-MW, $131 million Mule Creek Renewable Energy Center in Bay County, in the northwest portion of the state, is expected to wrap up around the end of the year. The solar power plant will utilize more than 150,000 photovoltaic (PV) panels from First Solar Incorporated (NASDAQ:FSLR) (Tempe, Arizona) to generate what would be enough carbon-free electricity to power the equivalent of about 23,000 homes at peak output. M.A. Mortenson Company (Minneapolis, Minnesota) is providing engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services for the project. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Power Project Database can click here to read the project report.
Industrial Info is tracking 19 solar plants attributed to Duke in Florida that are operational, in development or under construction. Subscribers to the GMI Plant Database can click here for a full list.
The most recent data from the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), through first-quarter 2024, shows Florida ranks third among U.S. states in terms of installed solar capacity (16,640 MW), trailing California (48,482 MW) and Texas (32,143 MW). Florida's installed solar capacity accounts for roughly 7% of the state's electricity mix, according to the SEIA.
Duke aims to add other renewable sources of power generation in Florida, including "green hydrogen," which is hydrogen produced from water via electrolysis. A related project is the $100 million addition of a green hydrogen system in DeBary, in Volusia County, which is connected to Duke's 74.5-MW DeBary solar plant. According a 2023 press release announcing the project, which is expected to wrap up in the fourth quarter, it is the first demonstration project in the U.S. "to successfully create clean energy using an end-to-end system to produce, store and combust 100% green hydrogen."
First, the system will utilize solar power from the DeBary plant to power two 1-MW proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzer units from Plug Power (NASDAQ:PLUG) (Latham, New York). Electrolysis units separate water molecules into oxygen and hydrogen atoms. Then, the system will release the resulting oxygen into the atmosphere, according to Duke, while the green hydrogen would be delivered to nearby, reinforced containers for safe storage.
During times of high energy demand, the system will deliver the stored hydrogen to a GE Vernova combustion turbine that will be upgraded to run on a blend of natural gas and hydrogen or up to 100% hydrogen. GE Vernova was recently spun off from General Electric as the company's gas power and renewable energy business. GE will continue trading under the company name GE Aerospace (NYSE:GE) (Boston, Massachusetts), another business unit that GE recently spun off.
Subscribers can click here to read more information on the hydrogen project.
Earlier this year, Duke boosted its five-year capital investment plan to $73 billion, an $8 billion increase over its previous guidance. For more information on this and other projects from the company, see February 9, 2024, article - Duke Narrows Focus to Regulated Growth, Ups Five-Year Capex.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 Trillion (USD).
