NextEra Energy

NextEra Energy, Inc.

Company type	Public
Industry	Energy
Founded	1925
Headquarters	Palm Beach County, Florida , United States
Area served	United States, Canada
Products	Electricity generation and distribution
Number of employees	14,900 (2020)

NextEra Energy, Inc. stands as a prominent American energy corporation, boasting approximately 58 GW of installed generating capacity, with 24 GW derived from fossil fuel sources. In 2020, the company reported revenues surpassing $18 billion and maintains a workforce of roughly 14,900 employees throughout the US and Canada. As of October 2024, it holds the position of the largest electric utility holding company worldwide by market capitalization, valued at over $170 billion. Its principal subsidiaries encompass Florida Power & Light (FPL), NextEra Energy Resources (NEER), NextEra Energy Partners, Gulf Power Company, and NextEra Energy Services.

The largest of these subsidiaries, FPL, delivers regulated electricity service to nearly 5 million customer accounts—reaching an estimated 10 million residents across close to half of Florida—ranking it as the third largest electric utility within the United States. NEER leads globally as the top producer of renewable energy generated from wind and solar sources. In addition to renewables, NextEra Energy Resources operates facilities fueled by natural gas, nuclear power, and oil. By 2020, fossil fuels and other non-renewable sources accounted for about 41% of the company’s total generating capacity. In 2018, NextEra was positioned 167th on the Fortune 500 list based on revenue.

Corporate history

The origins of NextEra Energy trace back to 1925 with the establishment of Florida Power & Light, later incorporated as FPL Group in 1984. The company acquired Colonial Penn in 1985 but divested it by 1991. In 1998, FPL Group founded FPL Energy to oversee operations beyond Florida’s borders and acquired 37 power plants located in Maine, Massachusetts, and New Jersey; this acquisition was finalized in 1999 despite regulatory hurdles.

During the early 2000s, FPL Group entered merger discussions with companies such as Iberdrola, Entergy, and Constellation Energy, though none culminated in agreements. The acquisition of Gexa Energy occurred in 2005. In 2007, Florida’s Public Service Commission denied a proposal for a coal-fired power plant near the Everglades due to environmental objections.

Acknowledged by the EPA in 2008 for achieving a 21% reduction in emissions, the company’s charitable division contributed $1 million in 2009 to aid customers with electricity expenses. In 2010, FPL Group rebranded itself as NextEra Energy, extending its electricity services across 28 states and into Canada.

Throughout the decade of the 2010s, several acquisition attempts were made targeting Hawaiian Electric Industries, Oncor Electric Delivery, SCANA, Santee Cooper, and Gulf Power Company. Of these efforts, only the $5.75 billion purchase of Gulf Power was completed in January 2019; Gulf Power later merged with FPL in 2022. This transaction included ownership of Plant Oleander and controlling interests in natural gas facilities at Stanton Energy Center.

In July 2013, NextEra collaborated with Spectra Energy on a $3 billion natural gas pipeline development project within Florida. The subsidiary New Hampshire Transmission resolved a $6.8 million claim with FERC in 2016 concerning unauthorized customer charges associated with an unapproved transmission initiative.

During the Republican primaries in 2016, NextEra contributed $1 million to a super PAC supporting Jeb Bush’s campaign. Later that year in August, the company raised $1.5 billion via equity offerings managed by Mizuho Securities, Credit Suisse, and Goldman Sachs.

In 2018, both NextEra and Entergy withdrew from the Nuclear Energy Institute following disagreements over access to workforce data related to nuclear operations; a subsequent lawsuit initiated by NextEra was dismissed within that year. Additionally, a federal appeals court rejected NextEra’s request for a $97 million tax deduction connected to payments made into a nuclear waste fund.

That same year, Oklahoma authorities issued a cease and desist order against NextEra for erecting wind turbines without securing necessary FAA or Defense Department approvals; this project was ultimately abandoned in May 2019.

In 2022, NextEra agreed to an $8 million settlement addressing violations linked to over 150 eagle fatalities at unpermitted wind farm sites.

Most recently in June 2024, NextEra completed a $2 billion equity unit sale through BofA Securities and Wells Fargo Securities aimed at supporting its continued expansion and investment objectives.

Avangrid transmission line project

In 2021, NextEra actively opposed Avangrid, Inc.'s 145-mile New England Clean Energy Connect (NECEC) transmission project, intended to transport hydroelectric power from Quebec to utilities in Massachusetts and Maine. This initiative, aimed at delivering renewable energy, posed competition to NextEra's oil-powered plant located in Yarmouth. Avangrid criticized NextEra for resisting a project that aligned with the renewable energy objectives of both Maine and Massachusetts. The transmission line had already obtained all required approvals at the state and federal levels and enjoyed backing from Maine Governor Janet Mills, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker, U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, as well as prominent state media outlets. Despite this support, Maine voters passed a ballot measure in November 2021 that halted the $1 billion transmission line, framing the choice as balancing clean energy advancement against protecting local forested areas.

Solar power ballot initiatives

NextEra Energy has been involved in backing unsuccessful ballot efforts aimed at imposing additional fees and regulatory hurdles on rooftop solar installations. In 2016, its subsidiary Florida Power & Light collaborated with Devon Energy and Tampa Electric Company, investing $20 million in a Florida ballot initiative that ultimately failed; this measure sought to restrict rooftop solar growth. Alissa Schafer from the Energy and Policy Institute highlighted NextEra’s assertive opposition to customer-owned solar systems.

Investigations in 2021 uncovered that NextEra lobbied Florida lawmakers to curtail net metering policies, which enable homeowners and businesses to sell surplus electricity back to FPL. The company contributed $10,000 to Women Building the Future, drafted legislation presented to legislator Jennifer Bradley, and later donated an additional $10,000 to her re-election campaign. Will Giese of the Solar Energy Industries Association condemned these maneuvers as attempts to preserve utility monopolies. Critics argue such legislative efforts jeopardize Florida’s swiftly expanding renewable energy sector.

Florida legislature candidates

Reports in 2021 exposed that FPL financed political consultants with over $3 million to support "ghost" spoiler candidates in critical Florida legislative contests. These no-party candidates were designed to confuse voters and siphon support away from Democratic contenders. One such candidate named "Rodriguez" drew votes from a Democratic candidate sharing the same surname by focusing campaign messaging on health care and climate issues; these efforts were funded by out-of-state political committees. The Democratic nominee lost by a margin of just thirty-two votes. Former Senator Frank Artiles and an associate faced felony charges related to campaign finance violations and conspiracy.

Artiles maintained longstanding connections with Florida utilities including NextEra and its subsidiary FPL, receiving upwards of $30,000 in political contributions during his career—$6,000 of which came directly from NextEra. His political committee also accepted nearly $13,000 from NextEra. Prior to his resignation in 2017, Artiles expedited pro-utility legislation as chairman of the Florida Senate’s Communications, Energy and Public Utilities Committee; this included a bill permitting NextEra to transfer fracking expenses onto ratepayers.

In the 2018 election cycle, Senator Keith Perry secured re-election by approximately 2,000 votes with the help of independent candidate Charles Goston drawing votes away from Democrat Kayser Enneking. FPL donated $14.15 million to a political advertising nonprofit associated with groups that financed Goston’s advertisements. Perry received $20,000 through his political committee Building a Prosperous Florida and $13,500 in direct contributions from Florida utilities, including $1,000 from NextEra. During his tenure on Artiles’ committee, Perry supported NextEra’s exploratory legislation on fracking.