NEW YORK, Nov. 19, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Last night, Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) was recognized by PA Consulting Group, Inc. as the recipient of two 2014 ReliabilityOne™ Awards: Outstanding Technology and Innovation in the U.S. and Outstanding Reliability Performance in the southeast region of the U.S. The ReliabilityOne™ Award is given annually to the utilities that have achieved outstanding reliability performance and have excelled in delivering the most reliable electric service to their customers.
"At FPL, we are focused on delivering excellent value to our customers – providing safe and reliable electric service, with bills that are the lowest in Florida and 25 percent below the national average," said Manny Miranda, FPL vice president of power delivery. "Our investments in strengthening the electric system and integrating smart grid technologies have helped us achieve two consecutive years of best-ever reliability performance. This prestigious award is a tribute to FPL's more than 9,000 hard-working employees, who are committed to enhancing the service we provide our customers."
Since 2006, FPL has invested more than $1.5 billion on grid-strengthening improvements. The ongoing program – in addition to the company's system maintenance and improvement work – enables the system to better withstand Florida's severe weather and improve everyday reliability for customers in all weather. During that period, FPL has achieved these major milestones:
- Strengthened more than 500 main power lines (feeders) serving key community facilities, including hospitals, police and fire stations, and 911 communication centers
- Cleared vegetation from 110,000 miles of power lines
- Inspected 1.1 million utility poles, restoring or replacing those that no longer met FPL's standards for strength
- Installed cutting-edge technologies – including 4.6 million smart meters and 11,500 other intelligent devices – to reduce power outages and provide customers with unprecedented information to better control their electric bills
All utilities operating electric delivery networks in North America are eligible for consideration for the ReliabilityOne™ Award. There are a total of six regional awards including Northeast, Mid-Atlantic Plains, West, and Southeast. The selection of provisional recipients is based primarily on system reliability statistics that measure the frequency and duration of customer outages. After provisional recipients are selected, each company undergoes an on-site certification process which provides an independent review and confirmation of the policies, processes and systems used to collect, analyze and report a company's reliability results.
"Florida Power & Light has demonstrated a remarkable commitment to reliable service for its customers through extensive system improvements, including advanced technologies," said Jeff Lewis, PA Consulting Group's ReliabilityOne™ Program Director. "While other utilities are on the doorstep of a technological leap that will set new expectations for how companies handle reliability, FPL is already a national leader. FPL has kept the needs of customers at the forefront of its system improvements, hinging its business success on maintaining the highest standard of reliability."
About Florida Power & Light Company
Florida Power & Light Company is the third-largest electric utility in the United States, serving approximately 4.7 million customer accounts across nearly half of the state of Florida. As of year-end 2013, FPL's typical 1,000-kWh residential customer bill is approximately 25 percent lower than the national average and the lowest in Florida among reporting utilities. FPL's service reliability is better than 99.98 percent, and its highly fuel-efficient power plant fleet is one of the cleanest among utilities nationwide. The company was recognized in 2014 as the most trusted U.S. electric utility by Market Strategies International, and has earned the national ServiceOne Award for outstanding customer service for an unprecedented 10 consecutive years. A leading Florida employer with approximately 8,900 employees, FPL is a subsidiary of Juno Beach, Fla.-based NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE). For more information, visit www.FPL.com.
About PA Consulting Group
PA Consulting Group, Inc. (PA) is an employee-owned firm of over 2,500 people, operating globally from offices across North America, Europe, the Nordics, the Gulf and Asia Pacific. PA has experts in energy, financial services, life sciences and healthcare, manufacturing, government and public services, defense and security, telecommunications, transport and logistics. PA's deep industry knowledge, together with skills in management consulting, technology and innovation, allows them to challenge conventional thinking and deliver exceptional results with lasting impact. PA has partnered with energy clients for over 25 years to help them understand the challenges they face and define and implement an effective strategic response. PA's ReliabilityOne™ awards are presented to electric utilities providing their customers with the highest levels of reliability in the industry. PA's ReliabilityOne™ study is based on standard industry reliability statistics that measure the frequency and duration of electric power outages and has been analyzing electric utility performance since 1987. For more information about PA Consulting Group, visit www.paconsulting.com/energy.
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SOURCE Florida Power & Light Company