FPL Says Its Net Income Down 40 Percent From Year Ago

By Doreen Hemlock, South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Apr. 30–Juno Beach-based FPL Group Inc., which owns utility Florida Power & Light Co., on Monday reported net income of $150 million for the quarter ended March 31, down 40 percent from $251 million during the same period a year earlier.

The results include an unrealized tax loss of $126 million for accounting on certain hedges on prices of natural gas and power. But those losses on energy-supply contracts are offset by increases in the value of physical assets in the portfolio, FPL said in a statement.

Revenue during the period fell 14 percent to $3.08 billion.

Florida Power & Light Co., which serves South Florida, posted profits of $126 million for the quarter, up from $122 million a year earlier. Retail sales of electricity grew 3 percent during the quarter, as the client roster increased.

In the last 12 months, the average number of utility accounts rose by 98,000 or 2.2 percent, slightly ahead of its long-term historical growth rate, the company said.

“Florida Power & Light’s overall performance for the first quarter was in line with our expectations,” Lew Hay, the group’s chief executive said in the announcement.

In early April, FPL said it filed its 10-year resource plan with the Florida Public Service Commission, anticipating a need to add about 6,700 megawatts of new generation through 2016. The company’s 1,144 megawatt Turkey Point 5 power plant is slated to become operational in May, slightly ahead of schedule and under budget, FPL said.

Doreen Hemlock can be reached at dhemlock@sun-sentinel.com or 305-810-5009

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