FPL shows off Parrish solar plant

The emphasis was on clean energy and the future as Florida Power & Light Company formally commissioned the new FPL Manatee Solar Energy Center on Monday.

“It’s cool to be a fourth-grader in Manatee County today,” Commissioner of Agriculture Adam Putnam said as local students took part in solar cooking and solar racing competitions. “I don’t think there has ever been a more exciting time to be alive.”

To emphasize that yesterday’s science fiction has become today’s reality, Eric Silagy, FPL CEO and president, noted that when President Barack Obama helped commission the DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center in Arcadia in 2009, it was the largest in the country.

Today, FPL’s new solar energy centers in Parrish, Charlotte County and DeSoto dwarf the Arcadia plant.

Each of FPL’s new solar energy centers generate 74.5 megawatts of power, enough to light up 15,000 homes. In contrast, the Arcadia plant generates 25 megawatts of power, enough to power 3,000 homes.

At the time, Obama likened the advent of solar energy to the interstate highway system that transformed America.

Even though the commissioning of three new solar plants represents a giant step, it is just the beginning, Silagy said.

FPL plans to build new solar power plants at eight more locations by early 2018, comprising more than 2.5 million solar panels.

“We have been working hard to drive down the costs of adding solar so we can deliver even more zero-emissions energy to all of our Florida customers,” Silagy said.

Each of the eight new plants will generate 74.5 megawatts of power, enough to power 120,000 homes. FPL officials have not yet announced locations for the other plants.

Eric Draper, executive director of Florida Audubon, is elated by the solar energy building boom.

“It’s the most exciting thing that’s happening in Florida this year. A year ago, I stood here as FPL broke ground on this solar site, marking the start of the installation of 1 million solar panels that are now producing zero-emissions energy,” Draper said. “An additional eight new solar energy centers is a major step toward reducing carbon emissions and saving water, benefiting the earth and all Floridians.”

Silagy reinforced the point that the new solar energy plants are about our children and future generations.

“We are plotting a course that will allow future generations to enjoy clean, renewable energy,” Silagy said.

Cynthia Brisson, a science teacher for Manatee School for the Arts, said this was the first time her school has fielded a competitive science team.

“They have been working on this for weeks. We are pretty excited to be here,” Brisson said.

This story was originally published February 20, 2017 at 2:39 PM with the headline "FPL shows off Parrish solar plant."