Ryan Nicol
Florida’s Public Service Commission (PSC) has approved a surcharge that will run through 2025, allowing the Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) to recover costs associated with its massive storm response efforts this past hurricane season.
The PSC approved an interim monthly charge of $12.02 for residential customers who use at least 1,000 kilowatt-hours. The fee will run from Jan. 1 through Dec. 31 next year.
“These charges are subject to a refund, with interest, pending further review once the total actual costs are known,” adds a release from the PSC announcing its approval. That flexibility allows those fees to be adjusted as the complete costs of the storms come more into focus.
FPL and the entire state responded to three significant hurricanes this year: Debby, Helene, and Milton. The monthly surcharge is expected to cost FPL $1.2 billion in recovery costs.
The bulk of those costs, $811.1 million, stem from Hurricane Milton. Hurricane Helene also racked up $157.8 million in costs for FPL, while Hurricane Debby resulted in $113.5 million.
The interim charge will also help FPL replenish its $150 million storm reserve.
FPL was active during preparation for each major storm this season, organizing thousands of workers ahead of time to help restore power as soon as conditions improved after landfall. Nearly 1.3 million FPL customers lost power after Milton, the most significant of the three storms.
“FPL worked relentlessly to quickly restore power to our customers in the aftermath of each of these hurricanes,” FPL President and CEO Armando Pimentel said in a prepared statement announcing the surcharge request.
“We’re mindful that customers pay these restoration costs, which is why we continue to invest in storm hardening and smart grid technology. This avoids many outages, speeds restoration and reduces restoration costs while helping customers bounce back faster, from getting kids back to school to getting Florida’s economy back up and running.”
