Duke Energy gets approval for solar power centers in four counties

Duke Energy.

Duke Energy of Florida received approval for a solar power rate adjustment from the Florida Public Service Commission (PSC).

The approval covers four Duke projects in Florida, providing cost recovery for the first phase of a larger plan involving four projects that add about 300 megawatts (MW) of solar power generation.

Those projects involve solar centers, including the Sundance project in Madison County, which is expected to generate approximately 74.9 MW of energy. Another center, called Rattler, is in Hernando County and will generate 74.9 MW of power. The Half Moon center, located in Sumter County, will be responsible for 74.9 MW, while the Bailey Mill center in Jefferson County will account for 74.9 MW of power.

The combined projects are expected to be operational sometime between July 2026 and May 2026. Estimates of the financial benefits from all four centers total $924.4 million, according to a PSC press release issued on Tuesday.

The approval will result in a rate increase for the Duke customers in those counties. The annual revenue requirement to handle the projects is estimated to be $73.3 million. That will likely result in that rate hike for most customers. A customer using 1,000 kilowatt-hours of energy a month and likely generating a standard charge of $0.47 is estimated to increase by $0.56 per project. Those costs will be at least partially offset by fuel savings of approximately 17 cents per center in the four projects. That offset will come from reduced natural gas consumption, though PSC officials acknowledged the full rate impact won’t be certain until those projects are operational.

While Duke Energy customers in those four counties will see some increases, the company has recently received rate decreases in Florida.

In late 2024, the PSC approved Duke’s request to lower rates in several counties. Those rate decreases began in January.

A typical Duke customer in Florida saw a reduction on their monthly energy bill by $9.77 on their January bill compared to December for the use of 1,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity. According to a Duke Energy press release, commercial or industrial customers likely saw a decrease in energy charges of about 5% to 11%.

Duke Energy Florida serves approximately 2 million customers in multiple counties in central and north Florida.