Florida Public Service Commission native order document 01957-2024

Order No. PSC-2024-0099-FOF-EIFlapubserv

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FILED 4/17/2024
DOCUMENT NO. 01957-2024
FPSC - COMMISSION CLERK
BEFORE THE FLORIDA PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION
In re: Fuel and purchased power cost recovery 	DOCKET NO. 2024000 1- EI
clause with generating performance incentive 	ORDER NO. PSC-2024-0099-FOF-EI
_f:_a_ct_o_r. ________________,u ISS UE D: April 17, 2024
The following Com.missioners participated in the disposition of this matter:
MIKE LA ROSA , Chairman
ART GRAHAM
GARY F. CLARK
ANDREW GILES FAY
GABRIELLA PASSIDOMO
ORDER APPROVING FLORIDA POWER & LIGHT COMPANY'S
NUCLEAR REPLACEMENT POWER COSTS
APPEARANCES:
MARIA JOSE MONCADA and DA YID M. LEE , ESQUIRES, Florida Power &
Light Company, 700 Universe Boule va rd, Juno Beach, Florida 33408-0420
On behalf of Florida Power & Light Company (FPL)
WALT 	TRIERWEILER, 	CHARL ES 	REHWINKEL, 	and 	PATRICIA 	A.
CHRISTENSEN, 	ESQUIRES, 	Office 	of 	Public 	Counsel, 	c/o 	The 	Florida
Legislature, 111 West Madison Street, Room 812, Ta llahassee, Florida 32399-
1400
On beha lf of the Citizens of the State of Florida (OPC)
SUZANNE BROWNLESS and RYAN SANDY, ESQUIRES, Florida Public
Service Commis sion, 2540 Shumard Oak Boulevard, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-
0850
On behalf of the Florida Public Service Commi ssion (Staff).
MARY ANNE HELTON , ESQUIRE, Deputy General Counsel, Florida Public
Service Commi ss ion, 2540 Shumard Oak Boulevard, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-
0850
Advisor to the Florida Public Service Comm ission.
KEITH C. HETRICK , ESQUIRE, General Counsel, Florida Public Service
Commission, 2540 Shumard Oak Boulevard, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0850
Florida Public Service Commission General Counsel
ORDER NO. PSC-2024-0099-FOF-EI
DOCKET NO. 20240001-EI
PAGE2
BY THE COMMISSION:
Background
The issues considered in this proceeding were deferred from the 2023 Fuel Clause docket
and are associated with nuclear power plant outages that occurred at Florida Power & Light
Company's (FPL) St. Lucie Units I and 2 and Turkey Point Units 3 and 4 between 2020 and
2022. A hearing was conducted on March 26, 2024.
Four parties had standing to participate in this proceeding: FPL, Office of Pub Iic Counsel
(OPC), Florida Industrial Power Users Group (FIPUG) and Florida Retail Federation (FRF).
The other parties to this docket that were without standing to participate in this proceeding are
the other investor-owned electric utilities: Tampa Electric Company; Duke Energy Florida, LLC;
Florida Public Utilities Company; Nucor; and PCS Phosphate.
FPL and OPC have agreed to stipulations on all the issues raised in this proceeding. FRF
and FJPUG have also stated that they take no position on the issues raised in this proceeding and
requested to be excused from the March 26 final hearing. 	FRF 's and FIPUG's requests for
excusal from the March 26 hearing were granted by Order No. PSC-2024-0075-PHO-EI, issued
March 21, 2024.
Given these facts, on March 8, 2024, FPL filed an Unopposed Motion to Stay Rebuttal
Testimony Deadline (Motion). 	In its Motion, FPL requested that the filing date for its rebuttal
testimony, March 12 , be stayed and that these stipulations be voted upon by the full Commission
at the March 26 hearing. 	FPL's Motion was granted by Order No. PSC-2024-0062-PCO-EI,
issued March 11, 2024. 	FRF filed a Prehearing Statement on March 11 , 2024. 	FPL, OPC, and
FIPUG filed Prehearing Statements on March 12, 2024.
At the March 26 final hearing, the prefiled testimonies of Daniel DeBoer and Joel Gebbie
on behalf of FPL , Richard A. Polich on behalf of OPC, and Carl Vinson and Tom Ballinger on
behalf of the Commission staff were admitted into the record as though read. 	Exhibit Nos. 1-22
were also admitted into the record.
We have jurisdiction over the subject matter of this proceeding by the provisions of
Chapter 366, Florida Statutes (F.S.), including Sections 366.04, 366.05, and 366.06, F.S.
Decision
The issues and stipulations1 agreed to by OPC and FPL are as follows:
1 With regard 10 FRF and FIPUG, these stipulations are Type 2 stipulation s. 	A Type 2 stipulation occurs on an
issue when the utility and staff, or the utility and at lea st one party adversarial to the utility, agree on the resolution
of the issue and the remaining parties (including staff if they do not join in the agreement) do not object to us relying
on the agreed language to resolve that issue in a final order.
ORDER NO. PSC-2024-0099-FOF-El
DOCKET NO. 20240001-El
PAGE3
ISSUE 1: 	What adjustment should be made with respect to 	replacement power costs
associated with any unplanned outages that occurred at Turkey Point or St. Lucie
during the calendar years 2020, 2021, and 2022?
Stipulation: 	FPL shall credit customers $5 million, inclusive of interest, through the fuel
clause. 	The credit shall be included in the calculation of FPL's fuel factors the
next time the fuel factors are reset. The prudence of, and replacement power cost
calculations associated with, all forced or unplanned outages or down power
events at the Turkey Point and St. Lucie nuclear facilities which occurred during
the calendar years 2020, 2021, and 2022 are hereby fully resolved and shall not be
subject to further challenge or litigation in the future.
ISSUE 2: 	Should FPL be subject to a follow up nuclear operations and management audit
covering the 2024 to 2029 time period?
Stipulation: 	Yes, a follow up audit may be conducted no earlier than 2030.
These stipulations are the result of negotiations between OPC and FPL and benefit FPL's
customers in several ways. 	First, $5 million in replacement power costs associated with outages
that occurred at FPL's nuclear power plants between 2020 and 2022 will be refunded to FPL's
customers 	via 	FPL's proposed 	March 	2024 	Mid-Course 	Correction. 	This adjustment 	is
consistent with the findings in the Commission staff's audit that outages at Turkey Point Units 3
and 4 increased significantly during the period from 2019 to 2020, as well as at Port St. Lucie
Units I and 2 during the period 2020 to 2021. 	Commission staffs audit also found that FPL's
management instituted 	performance improvement 	efforts 	that 	provided 	positive 	results 	in
operational effectiveness at all nuclear units commencing in 2021. 	Second, nuclear power
provides cost effective, carbon neutral power resulting in rates that are the lowest in Florida.
Efficiently managing its nuclear units for operation at full permitted capacity results in a direct
cost benefit to all FPL customers. 	Third, productive nuclear power plant operations and
management require constant attention to maintain the level of service necessary to provide
reliable electricity at reasonable prices. The ability of OPC to do an operations and management
audit in 2030 will ensure that FPL continues to meet and improve its high nuclear power plant
operational standards.
Therefore , for the reasons stated above, we hereby approve the above stipulations. 	The
stipulations having been approved, there are no further matters to be decided in this proceeding
and this proceeding is concluded.
Based on the foregoing, it is
ORDERED by the Florida Public Service Commission that the above-stated stipulations
are hereby approved effective as of the date of this order. It is further
ORDERED that the Fuel and Purchased Power Cost Recovery Clause docket is an on-
going docket and shall remain open.
ORDER NO. PSC-2024-0099-FOF-EI
DOCKET NO. 2024000 I-El
PAGE4
By ORDER of the Florida Public Service Commission this 17th day of April, 2024.
SBr
Florida Public Ser 	ce Commission
2540 Shumard Oak Boulevard
Tallahassee, Florida 32399
(850) 413-6770
www.floridapsc.com
Copies furnished: 	A copy of this document is
provided to the parties of record at the time of
issuance and, if applicable, interested persons.
NOTICE OF FURTHER PROCEEDINGS OR JUDICIAL REVIEW
The Florida Public Service Commission 	is required by Section 	120.569( I) , Florida
Statutes, to notify parties of any administrative hearing or judicial review of Commission orders
that is available under Sections 120.57 or 120.68, Florida Statutes, as well as the procedures and
time limits that apply. 	This notice should not be construed to mean all requests for an
administrative hearing or judicial review will be granted or result in the relief sought.
Any party adversely affected by the Commission's final action in this matter may request:
1) reconsideration of the decision by filing a motion for reconsideration with the Office of
Commission Clerk, 2540 Shumard Oak Boulevard, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0850, within
fifteen (15) days of the issuance of this order in the form prescribed by Rule 25-22.060, Florida
Administrative Code; or 2) judicial review by the Florida Supreme Court in the case of an
electric, gas or telephone utility or the First District Court of Appeal in the case of a water and/ or
wastewater utility by filing a notice of appeal with the Office of Commission Clerk, and filing a
copy of the notice of appeal and the filing fee with the appropriate court. 	This filing must be
completed within thirty (30) days after the issuance of this order, pursuant to Rule 9. I I 0, Florida
Rules of Appellate Procedure. 	The notice of appeal must be in the form specified in Rule
9.900(a), Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure.

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