JUNO BEACH, Fla. – Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) has completed 2,000 miles of overhead-to-underground neighborhood power line conversions through the company’s Storm Secure Underground Program, benefitting more than 200,000 customers.

What is the Storm Secure Underground Program? FPL’s Storm Secure Underground Program uses a data-driven approach to improving the resiliency of the electric grid and restoring power for customers after hurricanes and severe weather. FPL strategically selects communities for undergrounding based on metrics such as:

• Power outages during named storms
• Vegetation-related outages
• Other reliability metrics

The program is designed to strengthen the electric grid, improve storm resilience and reduce restoration costs and outage times associated with hurricanes and extreme weather events. Undergrounding is one part of FPL’s broader storm hardening strategy, which also includes overhead pole hardening, trimming trees and vegetation near equipment and substation flood monitoring. 

How have underground neighborhood lines performed during recent storms? No electric grid can be completely stormproof, and severe weather can cause outages regardless of whether power lines are overhead or underground.  FPL’s storm performance data, however, shows that underground neighborhood lines have experienced fewer outages than overhead neighborhood lines during recent hurricanes. 

• About five times better performance during Hurricane Ian in 2022. 

• About 5-14 times better performance during the 2024 hurricane season featuring Hurricanes Debby, Helene and Milton. 

Because underground neighborhood lines are less exposed to wind, trees and other debris, they can also reduce the amount of storm-related damage crews must repair following severe weather. 

How can you put 2,000 miles into perspective? Surpassing 2,000 miles in 2026 is roughly the equivalent of:

• About 4.5 times the length of Florida
• About 2.5 drives from Pensacola to Key West.

A word from Michael Jarro, FPL vice president of Power Delivery: “Reaching 2,000 miles of projects completed under the Storm Secure Underground Program is the result of true partnerships between FPL, our customers and the communities we serve. We appreciate the patience and cooperation of customers while this work takes place in their neighborhoods. We look forward to bringing these resilience benefits to more neighborhoods throughout our service area in the years ahead, strategically improving the electric grid to better prepare for the next storm that impacts our area.”

About Florida Power & Light Company 

Florida Power & Light Company is America’s largest electric utility, delivering reliable power to more than 6 million customer accounts — serving approximately 12 million people across Florida. By leveraging a diverse energy mix, including nuclear, natural gas, solar and battery storage, FPL operates one of the most fuel- and cost-efficient power generation fleets in the U.S. and has earned the ReliabilityOne® National Reliability Award for seven of the last ten years. FPL is a subsidiary of Juno Beach, Florida-based NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE), which is one of the largest electric power and energy infrastructure companies in North America and is a leading provider of electricity to American homes and businesses. NextEra Energy is also the parent company of NextEra Energy Resources, LLC, which, together with its affiliated entities, is advancing America’s energy future with one of the largest and most diverse portfolios of power generation and infrastructure solutions. For more information about NextEra Energy companies, visit these websites: www.NextEraEnergy.com, www.FPL.com, www.NextEraEnergyResources.com.