Florida Power & Light said Monday that it will invest $1 billion to demolish a Port Everglades power plant and replace it with a more modern facility, the South Florida Sun Sentinel reported.
Under the plan, the old plant would be demolished in 2013. It would be replaced by a more efficient one, which will create more electricity while reducing air pollution, the company said.
Construction would create 650 jobs if it comes to fruition, the newspaper reported.
Neil Nissan, an FPL spokesman, told the newspaper it is too soon to know what impact the construction may have on rates in the short term. He said rate changes wouldn't take place until 2016, when the plant starts operating.
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He also said the plant's increased efficiency will save customers $400 million over its 30-year life span.
Broward Sierra Club member George Cavros said the new plant will be positive.
"The community has been asking FPL to refurbish the plant for 10 years,'' he told the newspaper. "It's a long time coming, but it's good news."
The new will generate 1,280 megawatts of power, enough to serve about 260,000 homes, just slightly more than the current numbers. But it will use 35 percnet less fuel per megawatt hour, FPL said.
