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Despite being run by a pro-fossil fuels governor who has clamped down on decarbonisation efforts, the US state of Florida is fast transforming itself into a solar energy superpower.
The background: Even as governor Ron DeSantis erased most references to climate change from state laws last year, the shift to solar energy was gathering momentum. Favourable economics, combined with Florida’s abundant sunshine and federal tax incentives for clean energy, more than offset the state government’s preference for fossil fuels.
The latest: Solar accounted for 9% of Florida’s power generation in 2024, up from just 3% in 2020, according to data collated by research group Ember. But the real uptick is looming.
Florida Power & Light (FPL), the largest utility in the US, plans to more than triple its installed solar capacity in less than a decade — from 7.1GW today (enough to cover more than 25% of the utility’s demand during the middle of the day) to 24.5GW by the end of 2034.
To maximise the use of that low-cost energy, FPL plans to add 7.6GW of battery storage capacity.
This solar-plus-storage boom will allow the utility to shut three coal-fired generating units ahead of schedule (coal’s share of the mix has already slumped to below 3%, per Ember’s data) while also substantially reducing its reliance on gas.
By 2034, solar will account for 35% of FPL’s annual power output, while gas’ share will fall from 72% to 46%, the company says in its latest 10-year plan, which the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) summarised here.
The switch is aimed at reducing costs: In 2024, solar plants saved FPL’s customers $218 million in gas-related fuel costs.
“Solar and battery storage remain the most-cost effective resource options as well as the only viable options to meet FPL’s needs in the near term,” the company says, noting the quick deployment times for these technologies.
According to IEEFA, Florida’s brisk transition from fossil fuels to solar and storage bodes ill for gas-fired power plants across the country. FPL’s gas facilities are particularly efficient, so if even they can’t compete with solar and batteries, “few if any other utility systems will be able to do so, either.”
Yes, but: President Donald Trump’s hefty duties on imported solar panels and batteries could reduce the technologies’ economic advantages and slow adoption rates. Further, the AI-related surge in data centre projects will push up electricity consumption, which could delay closures of fossil fuel plants.
Read also: These countries are leading the solar energy revolution
