FPL recognized for recovery work

Florida Power & Light has been recognized for its post-hurricane recovery work in 2016 with the Edison Electric Institute’s “Emergency Recovery” and “Emergency Assistance” awards.

The institute presented the awards during its winter Board of Directors and CEO meeting in Palm Beach, according to a news release by the institute.

The awards recognized FPL’s “outstanding power restoration efforts on behalf of its customers following hurricanes Hermine and Matthew in 2016, and for assisting Jacksonville Electric Authority in recovering from Matthew,” the institute said in the release.

FPL, based in Juno Beach, restored more than a million power outages in less than two full days after Hurricane Matthew left the area, the release said. In addition, its smart grid automated switches prevented about 118,000 customer interruptions, the release said.

To help the Jacksonville utility restore power after Matthew, FPL supplied 150 workers who logged 16,800 hours, the release said.

Last week, FPL asked the Florida Public Service Commission to let it recover nearly $320 million in Matthew-related restoration costs by increasing customers’ rates over 12 months. If approved, a user of 1,000 kilowatt hours per month would pay an additional $3.36 a month.

Founded in 1933, the Edison Electric Institute represents all U.S. investorowned electric companies, as well as electric utilities around the world. The institute announces its recovery and assistance awards twice yearly.