FPL Energy LLC, the independent power production subsidiary ofFPL Group, Inc. said yesterday it expects to have a 500-megawattcombined cycle gas-fired power plant in Johnston, RI, up andrunning by 2002. Rights to build and operate the plant, which willbe located near Providence, were purchased from Reliant EnergyPower Generation, Inc., a subsidiary of Houston-based ReliantEnergy. The purchase price was not disclosed.

“FPL Energy’s Rhode Island plant will help meet the region’sgrowing power demands with efficient, clean energy,” said FPLEnergy President Lew Hay. “FPL Energy has a strong commitment tothe power plants we currently own, operate and are building in theregion and are looking ahead to a close relationship with our newneighbors in Johnston. This plant will complement the value of FPLEnergy’s New England portfolio by further diversifying our fuel andtechnology mix as well as increasing our overall scale.”

Evolving power market rules in New England have had a positiveeffect on the building climate for projects like the Rhode Islandfacility, Hay said, with industry and policymakers working togetherto create a more effective marketplace under the changingregulatory climate. One advantage is that renewable sources ornatural gas fuel nearly 85% of FPL Energy’s electric generation.

On the sale of its rights to build and operate the plant, JoeBob Perkins, Reliant Energy’s Wholesale Group president, said thathis company’s wholesale power strategy “is to build or acquirestrategic positions in selected regions across the country and toaggressively commercialize those assets. The sale to FPL Energybest complements our strategy while, at the same time, serves theincreasing power-generating needs of the citizens of Rhode Islandto receive reliable energy from a first-rate electricity provider.”

FPL Energy has more than 3,000 MW of natural gas, wind and solargenerating facilities in operation, with power plants in operationor development in 14 states, and natural gas-fueled power plantsrepresenting approximately 65% of its portfolio. FPL Energy expectsto begin operation of a new 1,000-MW plant in Texas early thissummer and has announced plans to build plants that would addnearly 2,500 megawatts to its operations by 2003. FPL Group’sprincipal subsidiary — Florida Power & Light Co. — is oneof the nation’s largest electric utilities, serving 3.8 millioncustomer accounts in Florida.

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