FL Power & Light Unveils World’s Largest Solar-Powered Battery In Manatee County

PARRISH, FL — Florida Power & Light unveiled the world’s largest solar-powered battery Monday night in Manatee County.

During a commissioning ceremony, FPL illuminated the night sky with a light and drone show powered by the newly commissioned FPL Manatee Energy Storage Center, a world-record breaking solar battery, in Parrish.

Charged by the existing Manatee Solar Energy Center, the battery will increase the predictability of solar, extending its benefits even when the sun is not shining, such as at night or on a cloudy day, according to a news release from FPL.

The Solar Energy Center is made up of 132 energy storage containers, organized across a 40-acre plot of land, equivalent to 30 football fields. The battery has a 409-megawatt capacity and can deliver 900 megawatt of energy – the equivalent of 100 million iPhone batteries, or enough energy to power approximately 329,000 homes for more than two hours.

“It’s been a momentous year for clean energy in Florida – FPL opened the year by formally shutting down its last coal-fired plant in the state and now we’re closing the year by shattering a world record and commissioning the largest solar-powered battery in the world,” Eric Silagy, FPL president and CEO, said.
Since construction started on the world’s largest solar-powered battery in Parrish, FPL has installed more than 13 million solar panels and is about 45 percent of the way toward reaching its “30-by-30” goal to install 30 million solar panels throughout Florida by 2030, Silagy said.
“What makes me most proud is that these projects are cost-effective for customers, which helps keep bills low over the long term. This battery is another example of how FPL has become a leader in clean energy and sustainability without sacrificing affordability or reliability,” he said.
The newly operational battery is the world’s largest battery when measured by generating output and the world’s largest solar-powered battery when measured by both total output and capacity per hour, FPL said
When the sun’s rays are strongest, the battery system will store extra solar energy produced by the existing Manatee Solar Energy Center and feed that power to the grid when it’s needed most. By deploying energy from the battery when there is a higher demand for electricity, FPL will offset the need to run other power plants – further reducing emissions and saving customers money through avoided fuel costs, the company said.