The Florida Public Service Commission staff has recommended to the commission that it require Florida Power & Light Company to submit the necessary information by August 15 to initiate a base rate proceeding regarding FPL's future rates. The staff has asked the commission to consider its recommendation on May 15.

FPL said its current rate agreement will remain in effect until April 15, 2002.

In 1999, FPL agreed with the Public Counsel and the PSC to reduce rates by $1 billion or approximately $350 million annually for a three-year period. The incentive-based agreement also included revenue rebates to customers if the company's revenues exceeded specified levels. In 2000, customers received a $22.8-million rebate, and the company expects to refund approximately $100 million in June.

"Our customers have realized significant benefits from our current incentive-based agreement," said Paul Evanson, president of FPL. "We are disappointed that the FPSC staff would call for this action at this time. We believe our customers would be best served by allowing adequate time for a dialogue between us and the commissioners and Public Counsel on future rate structures rather than embarking on a costly and time consuming base rate proceeding."

Mr. Evanson pointed out that FPL has lowered base rates since its last rate proceeding more than 15 years ago. He said this is especially noteworthy considering that over the past decade the company has spent nearly $9 billion in new plant and system expansion and is currently serving more than 700,000 additional customers. He also noted that FPL's residential base rates are lower than other major utilities in Florida and are 11 percent below the national average.

In its recommendation to the commission, the FPSC staff expressed concerns related to FPL's plans to participate in the creation of an independent transmission company along with other major utilities in Florida. FPL has been proceeding to meet the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's Order 2000 to establish a regional transmission organization. The company said it may have to re-evaluate its plans in light of the FPSC staff's expressed concerns.

Florida Power & Light Company is the principal subsidiary of FPL Group, Inc. , one of the nation's largest providers of electricity-related services with annual revenues of more than $7 billion. The company serves approximately 3.9 million customer accounts in Florida. FPL Energy, LLC, FPL Group's U.S. and international energy-generating subsidiary, is a leader in producing electricity from clean and renewable fuels. Additional information is available on the Internet at www.fpl.com.

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SOURCE: Florida Power & Light Company