NextEra, also based in Florida, has become a giant by racking up profits from its regulated utility business at FPL and using that as a foundation to build wind, solar and battery projects across the United States and Canada. NextEra Energy CEO James Robo responded to a question from a Bank of America Securities analyst and said the company had FPL CEO Eric Silagy turn over emails and text messages and concluded. At the end of the earnings call, Robo announced he will be retiring from his position on March 1 and John Ketchum, currently president and CEO of NextEra Energy Resources, will succeed him. as reported by the Energy and Policy Institute. A little over a month ago, NextEra Energy and its yieldco affiliate NextEra Energy Partners NEP +2.4% (NEP) raised financial guidance for calendar years . NextEra was a traditional utility company when it was started in 1925. The flight took place just prior to Artiles push on legislation that would have allowed NextEra to charge its Florida customers for out-of-state exploratory fracking. The company was trading well above its peers before news that Silagy would leave his post this month and depart the company in mid-May. They cited utilities expert Karl Rabagos testimony in the rate case, in which he noted that FPL spent millions of dollars in dues paid to certain politically active trade associations and cited the commissions own documents in the rate case. Consumers for Energy Fairness own expenditures have gone to Republican candidates and Republican-affiliated PACs that have also received funding from the states utilities, like Jobs for Florida and Floridians for Economic Freedom. The proposed bill would allow landlords to sell cheap solar panels to their tenants. At the end of the earnings call, Robo announced he will be retiring from his position on March 1 and John Ketchum, currently president and CEO of NextEra Energy Resources, will succeed him. Some of thislike turning a news website into a mouthpiece for the utility or surveilling a newspaper columnist in the hopes of catching him doing something embarrassingsounds like the stuff of conspiracy theories. About NextEra Energy NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE) is a leading clean energy company headquartered in Juno Beach, Florida. The company was implicated in a ghost candidate scheme in Florida that ousted a climate advocate from state office. Pasco park restaurant plans must wait for study of nearby burial mound, Tampa race has 4 candidates, including 2 council veterans, seeking open seat, St. Petersburg, Tampa Bay Rays to discuss these 9 topics about Tropicana Field, Rays Tyler Glasnow sustains oblique injury during practice, Hillsborough must right-size its school system | Editorial. News. The most comprehensive solution to manage all your complex and ever-expanding tax and compliance needs. On Tuesday, it became clear that Wall Street had noticed the stories. Some critics of Florida Power & Light, like Alissa Jean Schafer of watchdog group Energy Policy Institute, have welcomed Pimentels uneventful background. NextEra Energy (NE) is currently under investigation by the Florida Department of Law Derek Robins June 26, 2022 Business Enforcement for funneling money through a partisan political committee to a "ghost candidate" scheme that has already resulted in felony charges against five political operatives. With the Florida state senate hanging in the balance in the 2020 election, a network of dark-money groups engineered a brazen scheme to siphon votes from Democrats to third-party ghost candidates in three of Floridas legislative elections, all of which were won by Republicans, two by razor-thin margins. 11/22/2021. The company was implicated in aghost candidate scheme in Floridathat ousted a climate advocate from state office. So, thats probably all that were going to say on that today.. But nobody brought up FPLs alleged skulduggery during the hearing. Artiles has pleaded not guilty to the charges. Alabama political firm and former NextEra consultant Matrix LLC, led by Joe Perkins, sued Canopy LLC, another firm allegedly working with NextEra. Watchdog exposing the attacks on renewable energy and countering misinformation by fossil fuel interests, Artiles close relationship with NextEra Energy and Florida Power & Light included NASCAR perks, campaign contributions. Numerous studies have shown that rooftop solar provides a net-benefit to other, non-solar customers. So What Is Community Solar? On Wednesday, FPL spokesperson Chris McGrath denied that FPL was involved in the ghost candidate scheme. Despite climate action often being frustrated by Republican leaders in Congress and at the local level, states with Republican governors and a majority of Republican state legislators are leading the nation in solar and wind. CTRL + SPACE for auto-complete. Though this bill had massive potential to make clean energy more accessible for everyday people, FPL realized their profits would be cut if it were passed. We deliver climate news to your inbox like nobody else. If you are somebody who maybe is on the fence about whether a wind farm should come to your community, and you see all this about what NextEra has doneand its true, (the company) really has behaved terriblythen, does that make you more or less trustworthy of them?. All three districts received slightly modified versions of the same mailer, which seemed to target liberal-leaning voters in an apparent effort to siphon those votes away from the Democratic candidate. Pimentel was CEO of NextEra Energy Resources, the company's unregulated arm focused on renewable power, for eight years before retiring in 2019. The nonprofit committees were set up by political consultants working for FPL, who had consulted with Silagy, according to reporting by the Orlando Sentinel, the Miami Herald and the Florida Times-Union. We take all allegations seriously, and weve found no evidence that either FPL or our employees had any involvement in, financially supported, or directed any third party to support ghost candidates during last years Florida election cycle, he said. Clarification: This story was updated on Jan. 27, 2022, to reflect that the Jacksonville job was arranged by consultants for FPL, not directly by the company. History of Power: Duke Energy's Century-Old Legacy. Both South Florida mailers for Alex Rodriguez and Celso Alfonso and Central Florida mailers for Jestine Iannotti featured identical text, focused on fixing health care, fighting climate change, and speaking truth to power. racial slurs directed at black members of the Florida Legislature. News images are from video content on CNNs YouTube Channel. Description. We deliver climate news to your inbox like nobody else. I dont think youre going to see any headlines like that (with Pimentel). Pimentel was CEO of NextEra Energy Resources, the companys unregulated arm focused on renewable power, for eight years before retiring in 2019. Build the strongest argument relying on authoritative content, attorney-editor expertise, and industry defining technology. The Senate District 37 scandal was one of three races in Florida in the 2020 cycle that followed a nearly identical pattern: A close race, an unknown third party candidate to siphon some of the votes, and campaign mailers attacking the Democratic candidate, all paid for by new, out-of-state political committees. The settlement is the end result of a . Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License by Energy and Policy Institute. While FPL maintains they didnt know the full extent of what the firm was doing, piles of leaked emails and texts say otherwise. Reuters provides business, financial, national and international news to professionals via desktop terminals, the world's media organizations, industry events and directly to consumers. So, thats probably all that were going to say on that today.. He was previously chief financial officer of NextEra Energy, a partner at Deloitte & Touche and an accounting fellow at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. He helped build NextEra Energy Resources and seemed to choose his retirement as opposed to being forced out, the former colleague said. "I don't think you're going to see any headlines like that (with Pimentel).". Through skillful manipulation of the credits, NextEra from 2005 to 2009 'paid just $88 million in taxes on earnings of nearly $7 billion,' Business Week reports. The races for Senate District 9 and 39 followed the same pattern. On Wednesday, FPL spokesperson Chris McGrath denied that FPL was involved in the ghost candidate scheme. Since the publication of that article, McClure has taken an additional $8,500 in political contributions from Florida investor-owned utilities; $1,000 from NextEra Energy to his campaign directly, and $7,500 from Duke Energy to McClures political committee, Conservative Florida. On January 24th, the stock of renewables pioneer NextEra - now the U.S.'s largest utility company - dropped 8.8% on news the head of its FP&L unit was retiring. FPL engaged with dark money political committees to keep their profits safe in the wake of proposed legislation. Artiles is facing several felony charges for allegedly recruiting and paying an auto-parts dealer who shared the same surname as the Democratic incumbent in the race for Senate District 37 to run as a no-party candidate and confuse voters and influence the outcome of the 2020 election, according to his arrest affidavit. They asked if the PSCs review was enough. Since then, theyve become skilled at creating and maintaining wind farms, and today their power reaches far beyond Florida. If you havent already subscribed, please consider buying a print or digital subscription. In all races, the Republican won the []. Date. Attack on Rooftop Solar I dont have very many neighbors talk to me anymore, said Mark Schein, a retired farmer who upset people by leasing his property for the project, along with about a dozen others in the community. The retirement and subsequent. Before that, he covered politics and business in Iowa and in New Hampshire. Bainter and Data Targeting have been the focus of suspected misdeeds over the years. To the larger question of NextEras public image, Pomerantz answers with a question: What happens when the companys reputation as an unethical actor extends to their clean energy efforts? he asked. It depends on how trustworthy community members find NextEra in the coming months and how that support affects any proposed clean energy legislation. NextEras fourth-quarter earnings call with financial analysts, Robo announced he will be retiring from his position on March 1, PSC Executive Director Braulio Baez responded, Support my work with a digital subscription, Exclusive: Last grass lot on Miamis Brickell Avenue sells for $6 million. That political power has helped FPL to secure a return on equity of 10.6% in the latest rate increases that it secured from regulators much higher than the national average for utilities. Chevron Corp. Chief Executive Michael Wirth on Tuesday said a consolidation between the five top Western oil producers remains a possibility but would face regulatory hurdles. Pimentel replaces outgoing FP&L CEO Eric Silagy, who joined NextEra roughly two decades ago, worked as a top lobbyist for the company and has been at the center of some of its publicity problems. Pomerantz said the goal of moving to zero emissions is a very good one, but he questions the feasibility of using hydrogen as a major part of generating electricity. The firm, which also includes consultants Matt Mitchell and Michael Sheehan, came under intense scrutiny for their role in Floridas redistricting and were required to turn in over 1,800 pages of records as part of a lawsuit filed by Fair District voting-rights groups in 2013. NextEra Energy CEO James Robo responded to a question from a Bank of America Securities analyst and said the company had FPL CEO Eric Silagy turn over emails and text messages and concluded. He was previously chief financial officer of NextEra Energy, a partner at Deloitte & Touche and an accounting fellow at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Banter reportedly followed Simpsons orders, using the FPL-originated funds to pay FrankArtiles, a lobbyist who was indicted in the scheme last year. This story was originally published January 27, 2022, 6:00 AM. The state senate districts were 9, 37, and 39. "We have welcomed Armando Pimentel back to our company and have confidence that he will use his deep industry and company experience to further strengthen the FPL organization, NextEra Energy spokesperson David Reuter said. Theres a recipe in triumph and tragedy, Company run out of a Brooklyn walk-up shorted Florida produce packers $159,000 in pay, What Is Chapter 13 Bankruptcy? Bradleys political committee, Women Building the Future, has taken $47,500 from investor-owned utilities, with $12,500 coming from NextEra Energy and $35,000 from TECO. The scandal brings light to the measures electric companies will go to in order to protect their profits even those that claim to be in favor of pursuing renewable energy. Please support our work with a digital subscription. Dan Gearinos habit-forming weekly take on how to understand the energy transformation reshaping our world. He also was instrumental in the 2019 political campaign against the so-called energy choice petition drive, which was opposed by FPL and other utilities. According to reporting from the Orlando Sentinel, a broad criminal investigation is underway in Miami, with felony charges against former Senator Frank Artiles, and the spoiler candidate in District 37 has pled guilty. This is a very good deal for the climate.. 7,400 gallons of wastewater spilled into Johns Pass. If trust in NextEra dwindlesand seemingly it has, if stock recommendations are anything to judge bypeople might be less willing to consider the installation of a wind farm in the. You can keep up with her work on her site Environment.co. 10 Takeaways from the IEA's Newest World Energy Outlook. Can the PSC provide a complete list of 501(c)4 social welfare organizations that FPL has provided funding to over the past five years? FPL has for decades spent millions on lobbying and election influence at every level of politics in Florida, giving it and its parent company, NextEra Energy, immense influence over the states politicians. In response to the stories, FPL has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. Artiles accepted over $30,000 in political contributions from Florida utilities throughout his time in office, including $6,000 from NextEra, $4,500 from TECO, and $4,000 from Duke Energy in direct contributions. Its video library also archives coverage for later viewing. NextEra Energy is a total fraud, and veritably a criminal entity. The company, which has its main office in Spain, is hinting at job cuts, as Isla Binnie reports for Reuters. Campaign created by chips Armstrong Stop rewarding, and PUNISH those masquerading as renewable energy providers, like NextEra Energy Resources, formerly Florida Power & Light, and make them accountable for cleaning up their environmental carnage. AIF has close financial ties to Floridas investor owned utilities, as EPI has documented. FPL has said it was not fully aware of what its consultant was doing, and it has cast doubt on some of the reporting. Write CSS OR LESS and hit save. Has FPL ever given money to another nonprofit who worked with the consultants Lets Preserve the American Dream? A major new transmission line intended to pipe carbon-free hydropower from Canada into the U.S. Northeast has met a powerful opponent: the world's largest provider of renewable energy. Your source for the latest news and stories from NextEra Energy and its subsidiaries. The investigation around Artiles and the Senate District 37 race is ongoing. In one Orlando Sentinel article, Silagy was accused of working with a political consultant to harass a Democratic state senator who introduced legislation unfavorable to FP&L. He said that federal rules prohibit the PSC from including political expenses in the rate base and the company did not include these expenses as part of their supporting documentation and concluded that rates are not based upon costs for such prohibited purposes., Baez also defended the PSCs use of sampling as a means of auditing FPLs expenses saying it is common in all disciplines that use large amounts of data.. Director, Pres & CEO of Sub of Nextera Energy Inc (30-Year Financial, Insider Trades) Eric E Silagy (insider trades) sold 14,131 shares of NEE on 04/07/2021 at an average price of $78 a share. In the 2020 cycle alone, the Florida Republican Senate Campaign Committee (FRSCC) reported over $7 million dollars in expenditures to Data Targeting, for services including research, polling, advertising, campaign staff, and line items only reported as consulting. Nearly $183,000 of FRSCCs spending with Data Targeting was earmarked for the Senate District 37 race, the same race that led to Artiles arrest. In 2017, Artiles ended up in the headlines again over his ceremonial role at a NASCAR event sponsored by NextEra, where he waved the starting flag in a NextEra branded jacket, pictures of which he posted on his Facebook page. Canopy was started by former Matrix employees, led by Jeff Pitts. Every day or once a week, our original stories and digest of the web's top headlines deliver the full story, for free. Send news tips and questions to dan.gearino@insideclimatenews.org. In California, Wait Lists for EV Rebates Are Long and Some Programs Have Shut Down: California needs to ramp up sales of electric vehicles to take on climate change and reduce air pollution, but consumers are having trouble navigating the states incentives and rebates, as Nadia Lopez reports for CalMatters. That scheme included over half a million dollars spent on political mailers promoting the spoiler candidates. As the biggest player in the game, investors, politicians, and civilians rely on NextEra to play a major role in encouraging and supporting clean energy legislation. That were going to say on that today over half a million dollars spent on mailers... Nyse: NEE ) is a leading clean Energy legislation FPLs alleged during. And the Senate District 37 race is ongoing its main office in,! Strongest argument relying on authoritative content, attorney-editor expertise, and veritably criminal... 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