The second group, Mothers for Moderation, a DC-based 501(c)(4) dark-money group with over $15 million in revenue, states that its mission is to advocate for policies that benefit women, according to its 2018 IRS filings. I reported this story with Tracy Wholf, coordinating climate producer for ABC News, and we also worked together on a special episode of ABCs podcast Start Here that delves into the nuanced concerns on both sides of the conflict. The papers also reported that a member of the Jacksonville City Council who didnt want to sell the citys utility company to FPL was offered a job that was arranged by consultants for FPL in an unsuccessful attempt to get him to resign from the commission. "I don't think you're going to see any headlines like that (with Pimentel).". Alvarados firm, Alvarado Strategies, was paid by three political committees with connections to Associated Industries of Florida (AIF), a corporate interest group with strong utility ties. You want to measure economic success? Despite its position as a renewable energy generator, the company has been shrouded in controversy the most recent of which has to do with Florida Power & Light (FPL), one of the companies operating beneath them. Dan Gearino covers the midwestern United States, part of ICNs National Environment Reporting Network. There are two civil lawsuits in the mix as well. NextEras executives and shareholders have reason to worry, but its too soon to know how much. Since then, theyve become skilled at creating and maintaining wind farms, and today their power reaches far beyond Florida. Fargo, ND, USA / The Mighty 790 KFGO | KFGO. as reported by Miami Herald last December. NextEra Energy, the parent company of Florida Power & Light and Gulf Power, offered $11 billion in a failed attempt to purchase Jacksonville-based JEA that would have netted former JEA executives millions of dollars in bonuses. Its not clear yet whether law enforcement officials are investigating FPL or its executives for their involvement in the ghost candidate scheme, though the scandal has already resulted in criminal charges for some of its parties. That scheme included over half a million dollars spent on political mailers promoting the spoiler candidates. 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. Siemens Gamesa, a Leading Maker of Wind Turbines, Is Struggling: Wind turbine maker Siemens Gamesa lowered its financial outlook for 2022 and said it expects to lose money this year and next as it deals with high costs of raw materials and tough competition. In this first story in a series, I look at how the plan has divided the community and strained relationships between longtime friends and neighbors. Screen for heightened risk individual and entities globally to help uncover hidden risks in business relationships and human networks. John Ketchum, a 19-year veteran of NextEra Energy, is named president and chief executive officer (CEO), NextEra Energy.He will report directly to the NextEra Energy, Inc. Board of Directors. 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. That said, he acknowledges there is a cognitive dissonance between NextEras status as a major player in the transition to renewable energy and FPLs status as a utility that relies heavily on fossil fuels, with a reputation for fighting dirty in defending its interests. The no-party candidate, Alexis Alex Rodriguez, who did not campaign, received more than 6,000 votes. Canopy was started by former Matrix employees, led by Jeff Pitts. Entergy, which donated $10,000 to the Party [], [] has not shied away from shady political dealings in the past. He helped build NextEra Energy Resources and seemed to choose his retirement as opposed to being forced out, the former colleague said. 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. The third-party candidate in that race, Charles Goston, earned about 4,300 votes as an independent, despite being a lifelong Democrat. They then asked the PSC to supply answers to a series of questions about FPLs political spending that included: How was the $14 million FPL spent in 2018 on a nonprofit called Mothers for Moderation used and was any of it passed to other organizations at FPLs direction or with FPLs knowledge?. Shares of NextEra sank late last month by nearly 9%, their biggest daily drop in more than two years, after the company abruptly announced Silagy would retire under the threat of a formal. 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 there was no evidenceof illegality or wrongdoing on the part of FPL or any of its employees.. Sign up for Mary Ellens newsletter Politics and Policy in the Sunshine State. In a Jan. 5 letter, they asked the commission to determine whether the company was using ratepayer money for political purposes. The other candidate later revealed that he had been bribed to run. NextEra Energy is the largest generator of renewable energy in the United States and possibly the world. He came to ICN in 2018 after a nine-year tenure at The Columbus Dispatch, where he covered the business of energy. By Mary Ellen Klas They remained that way until they took a stake in early wind farms in exchange for canceling the debts owed to them. 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. 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. The Miami Herald and others reported claims that company executives worked with a consultant to derail certain state senate candidates and surveil a journalist who wrote critically about the regulated utility. Utilities gave nearly $2 million to five committees either linked to or controlled by AIF in the 2020 election cycle, over 20% of their total giving for the reporting period. Alissa Jean Schafer is a research and communications specialist at the Energy and Policy Institute. The Orlando Sentinel connected Republican consultant Alex Alvarado, Jobs for Florida and Floridians for Economic Freedom, attack on rooftop solar in 2020, via Florida Representative Lawrence McClure, NextEra, Florida utilities closely aligned with election fraud suspect Frank Artiles DangerousWombatDream, NextEra, Florida utilities closely aligned with election fraud suspect Frank Artiles shoukhin vlog, Records Show Senior Florida Power & Light Execs Closely Connected to Election Scandals - Energy and Policy Institute, Louisiana Democratic Party Funneled Utility Donations to Climate Candidate Challenger - DeSmog, Louisiana Democratic Party Funneled Utility Donations to Climate Candidate Challenger | Climate Change, Louisiana Democratic Party funneled utility donations to climate candidate's - Tools for Investors | News, Louisiana Democratic Party Funneled Utility Donations to Climate Candidate Challenger CommunistNews.net, Louisiana Democratic Party funneled utility donations to climate candidate challenger - Verite, Michigan utilities front groups begin misleading ad campaigns ahead of a vote on energy legislation. Where did the $4 million paid by FPL to consultants working with Grow United, the nonprofit organization that funded the ghost candidate advertising, originate from and what was it spent on? I know theres been a lot of back and forth and perhaps theres a lot of context to provide there. Dumoulin-Smith is director of U.S. Power, Utilities and Alternative Energy Equity Research for Bank of American Securities. Browse an unrivalled portfolio of real-time and historical market data and insights from worldwide sources and experts. NextEra Energy Inc., the largest U.S. utility by market cap and one of the world's top solar and wind power producers, has been called out for never declaring a net-zero emissions target like many other major power utilities have done. A former NextEra colleague of Pimentel's, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said Pimentel was a "straightforward, fact-based and driven" coworker with a calm temperament. An internal NextEra investigation found no wrongdoing, executives on the companys latest earnings call said, adding that Silagys departure was unrelated to any controversies. Its frustrating to see the Public Service Commission express no interest or concern in Floridas largest investor-owned utility company engaging in questionable smear campaigns and potentially illegal election activity while they increase rates, she said Wednesday. Alissa Jean Schafer is a research and communications specialist at the Energy and Policy Institute. Some critics of Florida Power & Light, like Alissa Jean Schafer of watchdog group Energy Policy Institute, have welcomed Pimentels uneventful background. Gostons campaign was largely funded by Republicans with ties to Perry, as reported by the Gainesville Sun. Real-time updates and all local stories you want right in the palm of your hand. NextEra Energy is the largest generator of renewable energy in the United States and possibly the world. In 2018-19, Mary Ellen was a Nieman Fellow at Harvard University. Write CSS OR LESS and hit save. They asked if the PSCs review was enough. NextEra Energy is on the receiving end of a proposed class action lawsuit in which a Nebraska homeowner alleges the electricity provider's wind turbines placed near residential communities are a "nuisance" and effectively deprive homeowners of the use and enjoyment of their property. Every day or once a week, our original stories and digest of the webs top headlines deliver the full story, for free. Other stories about the energy transition to take note of this week: Deep in the Democrats Climate Bill, Analysts See More Wins for Clean Energy Than Gifts for Fossil Fuel Business: U.S. Senate leaders have included plenty of favors for the fossil fuel industry in the big climate package they hope to advance this week, but most analysts have concluded these concessions amount to consolation prizes in a deal where clean energy is the clear winner. He helped build NextEra Energy Resources and seemed to choose his retirement as opposed to being forced out, the former colleague said. Pimentel has been a well-known but low-key power industry figure whose familiarity with NextEra suggests he will provide consistent leadership for with NextEra's top subsidiary, said Glenrock Associates utility analyst Paul Patterson. 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. Mary Ellen Klas is the state Capitol bureau chief for the Miami Herald, where she covers government and politics and focuses on investigative and accountability reporting. The energy company that runs the Florida Power & Light utility, as. NEW YORK, Feb 28(Reuters) - The new head of Florida Power & Light (FP&L) has at least one important objective above and beyond running U.S. power giant NextEra's crown jewel utility, analysts say: stay out of the headlines. Simpson, a longtime beneficiary of FPL political giving, may have spent NextEra-originatedfunds, with FPL knowledge, to pay off individuals with knowledge of his illegitimate child inwhat was reportedly known internally as Operation Ginger. The goal of these efforts appearto be to prevent the public from learning about the Senate Presidents indiscretions prior to hisascension to the top position in the state Legislature. A day later, PSC Chairman Andrew Fay responded with an unequivocal rejection of their request, saying that the PSC has a long-standing prohibition on the inclusion of lobbying and other expenses, which have been determined to bring no benefit to ratepayers, among the expenses to be recovered through rates charged to the public for service., Fay added that when FPL filed its rate request, the appropriate auditing function was conducted during the commissions consideration of the most recent FPL rate case, and the audit produced no evidence that FPL used, or was intending to use, ratepayer funds for the private benefit of the companys lobbying, campaigning or marketing affairs.. Consumers for Energy Fairness does not have a website or any public presence, but it spent over $5,000 with the public affairs firm McNicholas & Associates on beverages and food in 2019. Every day or once a week, our original stories and digest of the web's top headlines deliver the full story, for free. 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