{"id":2565,"date":"2026-06-02T23:36:13","date_gmt":"2026-06-02T23:36:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2565"},"modified":"2026-06-02T23:36:13","modified_gmt":"2026-06-02T23:36:13","slug":"editorial-pull-the-plug-on-this-power-mega-monopoly","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2565","title":{"rendered":"Editorial: Pull the plug on this power mega-monopoly"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n

NextEra Energy has not yet faced serious headwinds over its mission to become the largest regulated utility in the world.<\/p>\n

Read more Man who killed his girlfriend\u2019s baby and threw the body in a pond is executed in Florida<\/a><\/p>\n

But it should.<\/p>\n

The parent company of Florida Power & Light \u2014 which in Central Florida serves parts of Seminole and Volusia and all of Brevard \u2014 announced a $66.8 billion merger with Dominion Energy, allowing its expansion into Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina. It is part of \u201cAmerica\u2019s golden age of power demand,\u201d said NextEra CEO John Ketchum.<\/p>\n

That may be the case in NextEra\u2019s C-Suite. But in living rooms across Florida, the gold has mostly gone straight into NextEra\u2019s pockets.<\/p>\n

If Florida is any guide, customers in Dominion-serviced states should expect the higher rates and unwelcome political influence that FPL customers face, but on steroids. The merged company would not only be a mega-monopoly, Energy and Policy Institute Executive Director David Pomerantz told the New York Times. It would be \u201cnearly impossible to regulate.\u201d<\/p>\n

A\u00a0 laundry list of abuses<\/h4>\n

That\u2019s already the case in Florida.<\/p>\n

Ticking off a laundry list of allegations in a civil suit brought by NextEra investors, 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Gerald Bard Tjoflat cited \u201cCorporate malfeasance, bribery, off-the-books recordkeeping, surveilling journalists, creating \u2018ghost\u2019 candidates, corrupting independent media outlets, and a failed acquisition that spiraled into two federal indictments.\u201d A lot of that documentation flowed from the Orlando Sentinel\u2019s investigation that uncovered a flow\u00a0 underground money in the 2020 election, a trail that eventually led to FPL.<\/p>\n

The plaintiff investors are not Wall Street titans. They are pension funds for Hollywood police and Pembroke Pines police and firefighters.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

That NextEra could rack up a string of scandals and still extract multi-billion-dollar rate hikes for FPL stems directly from weak-kneed, inept oversight by the Florida Public Service Commission.<\/p>\n

NextEra\u2019s ambition and the PSC\u2019s capitulation have already broken a much older business deal than the merger. It is the basis for any state-sanctioned monopoly.<\/p>\n

A captive customer base<\/h4>\n

In this case, Florida allowed FPL to become an exclusive provider in a given region. FPL reaps the economic advantages of a captive consumer base and a guaranteed cash flow.<\/p>\n

In return, FPL agreed to regulation by the PSC, including rate hikes. Regulators are expected to balance the best interests of consumers with the utility\u2019s business needs. It\u2019s not working.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

When lawmakers asked the PSC to audit FPL to ensure that electric bills weren\u2019t funding political schemes, the PSC\u00a0just said no. When FPL\u00a0poured millions into a campaign to limit rooftop solar growth and wrote a bill discouraging solar investment, it was not a PSC concern.<\/p>\n

Profit-making blessed by the PSC has enabled NextEra to shower politicians and projects with campaign cash. NextEra is listed as one of Donald Trump\u2019s early ballroom donors.<\/p>\n

In 2021, the PSC took just one hour to approve a rate hike that would cost customers $4.86 billion over five years. Last year, the PSC appeared to ignore any staff recommendations in awarding a $6.9 billion rate hike that the state public counsel termed \u201cunconscionable.\u201d Tucked into the deal was permission for the highest profit margins in 48 states.<\/p>\n

Read more Amazon announces Prime Day 2026 dates \u2014 it\u2019s sooner than you think<\/a><\/p>\n

Crucially, the PSC-blessed package also allows owners of electricity-guzzling data centers to pay 70% of their anticipated energy costs instead of the originally proposed 90%. Customers will pick up the tab for the rest.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a key issue. The NextEra merger is based on predictions that data centers will usher in decades of high electricity demand to fuel AI.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a remarkably short-sighted read. Hyperscale data centers needed for AI face backlash across the country.\u00a0 At least $64 billion in projects have been blocked or delayed, according to Data Center Watch. Palm Beach County\u2019s Project Tango data center may be next.<\/p>\n

Much cause for concern<\/h4>\n

Angry residents have already forced a delay on the final vote.<\/p>\n

Their concerns are legitimate. In February, electricity rates nationally were 9% higher than the year before.<\/p>\n

In Virginia\u2019s \u201cData Center Alley,\u201d costs shot up by 26.3%. NextEra will need approval from Virginia, South and North Carolina to complete the merger. But Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger successfully campaigned on reining in data centers and higher electric bills.<\/p>\n

Opposition to data centers is gathering steam in North Carolina. And South Carolina Rep. Nancy Mace wants a one-year freeze on data center construction there.<\/p>\n

Gov. Ron. DeSantis correctly tried to rein in data centers with an AI Bill of Rights in the 2026 regular legislative session. It would have ensured data centers footed their own electric bills.<\/p>\n

But lawmakers who chafed at being pushed around by the inflexible governor\u2019s demands for the past eight years found their backbone just in time to do the wrong thing. The legislation died.<\/p>\n

A few weeks after the $6.9 billion rate hike, a NextEra affiliate put $250,000 into a DeSantis political action committee, according to the independent news site Seeking Rents.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s possible that regulators in other states will do a better job of protecting consumers, that politicians there will be less swayed by campaign money and that NextEra and FPL have put scandals in the rearview mirror.<\/p>\n

But before their utility regulators roll out the welcome mat, they should take a close look at how NextEra does business in its backyard.<\/p>\n

The Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board includes Executive Editor Roger Simmons, Opinion Editor Krys Fluker and Viewpoints Editor Jay Reddick. The Sun Sentinel Editorial Board consists of Executive Editor Gretchen Day-Bryant, Editorial Page Editor Steve Bousquet, Deputy Editorial Page Editor Dan Sweeney and editorial writers Pat Beall and Martin Dyckman. Send letters to insight@orlandosentinel.com.<\/em><\/p>\n

Read more Jeff Weltman shares why Magic hired Spurs\u2019 Sean Sweeney: \u2018He is relentless\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The parent company of FPL plans to gobble up Dominion Energy, allowing it to spread to Virginia and the Carolinas and become, according to one analyst, “nearly impossible to regulate.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2564,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[43,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2565","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-editorials","category-opinion"],"yoast_head":"\nEditorial: Pull the plug on this power mega-monopoly - Orlando Relocation Report<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2565\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Editorial: Pull the plug on this power mega-monopoly - Orlando Relocation Report\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The parent company of FPL plans to gobble up Dominion Energy, allowing it to spread to Virginia and the Carolinas and become, according to one analyst, "nearly impossible to regulate."\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2565\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Orlando Relocation Report\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-02T23:36:13+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/?p=2565#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/?p=2565\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/47d95744296542489ff5c4bd403450f8\"},\"headline\":\"Editorial: Pull the plug on this power mega-monopoly\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-02T23:36:13+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/?p=2565\"},\"wordCount\":982,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/?p=2565#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/cb02680b7e3befa077ac14f58e0d5f96.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Editorials\",\"Opinion\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/?p=2565#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/?p=2565\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/?p=2565\",\"name\":\"Editorial: Pull the plug on this power mega-monopoly - Orlando Relocation Report\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/?p=2565#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/?p=2565#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/cb02680b7e3befa077ac14f58e0d5f96.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-02T23:36:13+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/47d95744296542489ff5c4bd403450f8\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/?p=2565#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/?p=2565\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/?p=2565#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/cb02680b7e3befa077ac14f58e0d5f96.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/cb02680b7e3befa077ac14f58e0d5f96.webp\",\"width\":1024,\"height\":575},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/?p=2565#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Editorial: Pull the plug on this power mega-monopoly\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Orlando Relocation Report\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/47d95744296542489ff5c4bd403450f8\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/orlandorelocationreport.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Editorial: Pull the plug on this power mega-monopoly - Orlando Relocation Report","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2565","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Editorial: Pull the plug on this power mega-monopoly - Orlando Relocation Report","og_description":"The parent company of FPL plans to gobble up Dominion Energy, allowing it to spread to Virginia and the Carolinas and become, according to one analyst, \"nearly impossible to regulate.\"","og_url":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2565","og_site_name":"Orlando Relocation Report","article_published_time":"2026-06-02T23:36:13+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2565#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2565"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/#\/schema\/person\/47d95744296542489ff5c4bd403450f8"},"headline":"Editorial: Pull the plug on this power mega-monopoly","datePublished":"2026-06-02T23:36:13+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2565"},"wordCount":982,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2565#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/cb02680b7e3befa077ac14f58e0d5f96.webp","articleSection":["Editorials","Opinion"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2565#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2565","url":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2565","name":"Editorial: Pull the plug on this power mega-monopoly - Orlando Relocation Report","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2565#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2565#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/cb02680b7e3befa077ac14f58e0d5f96.webp","datePublished":"2026-06-02T23:36:13+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/#\/schema\/person\/47d95744296542489ff5c4bd403450f8"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2565#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2565"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2565#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/cb02680b7e3befa077ac14f58e0d5f96.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/cb02680b7e3befa077ac14f58e0d5f96.webp","width":1024,"height":575},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2565#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Editorial: Pull the plug on this power mega-monopoly"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/","name":"Orlando Relocation Report","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/#\/schema\/person\/47d95744296542489ff5c4bd403450f8","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com"],"url":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2565","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2565"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2565\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2564"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2565"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2565"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2565"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}