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A typical Florida Power & Light Co. customer will receive an 87-cent refund this March, the upshot of a tiny hole drilled into piping at the utility's Turkey Point Unit 3 nuclear plant in 2006. The credit will show up on March bills. The Florida Public Service Commission, which oversees utilities, ruled today that FPL failed to prove it prudently managed temporary contract workers during a spring 2006 outage at the plant. On March 31 that year, a small hole was drilled in pressurizer piping. An investigation found that a disgruntled sheet metal worker who had a history of scrapes with the law, failed an initial psychological exam and was hired through an outside contractor most likely intentionally drilled the hole.

FPL Energy Duane Arnold, LLC; Notice of Receipt and Availability of Application for Renewal of Duane Arnold Energy Center Facility Operating License No. DPR-49 for an Additional 20-Year Period The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC or Commission) has received an application, dated September 30, 2008, FPL Energy Duane Arnold, LLC, filed pursuant to Section 104b of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations Part 54 (10 CFR Part 54), to renew the operating license for the Duane Arnold Energy Center (DAEC).

In March 2006, a tiny hole -- a mere one-eighth of an inch -- was discovered in a critical pipe at the Turkey Point nuclear power plant. The hole ended up costing at least $6 million. This week, a heated debate has been going on in Tallahassee about who should pay the $6 million -- Florida Power & Light or its customers. New information obtained by state regulators shows that the prime suspect in the case was a contract employee who drilled the hole because he was angry with the utility. According to a federal document, he had failed an FPL psychological test and had a criminal background that included charges of criminal mischief.

Florida Power & Light Co. should have gone to greater lengths to make sure it was getting the best deal on contracts related to expansion of its nuclear plants in St. Lucie and Miami-Dade counties, consumer advocates argued Thursday. During a Florida Public Service Commission hearing in Tallahassee, representatives from the Office of Public Counsel said FPL should have sought competitive bids for the work it's doing to add capacity to four reactors at its St. Lucie and Turkey Point nuclear plants.

The company submitted a proposal Wednesday to the Florida Public Service Commission to increase base power rates by $1 billion in 2010 and $1.25 billion in 2011. Florida Power & Light proposes increasing electric rates by at least $1 billion a year starting next year. The company submitted a proposal Wednesday to the Florida Public Service Commission to increase base power rates by $1 billion in 2010 and $1.25 billion in 2011. FPL, the state's largest utility with 4.5 million customers, said the increase would allow it to earn a "fair" profit, while making its infrastructure stronger, more efficient and less likely to emit greenhouse-gas emissions.

When Florida Power & Light chief Armando Olivera was asked Tuesday whether he and company executives would be willing to give up a pay raise to help struggling consumers with their bills, he offered a short answer: "No," he said, "because that would be short- sighted." Olivera, who as FPL's CEO is paid $3.6 million a year, told state regulators that although the economy is tight, executive pay is crucial to the successful operation of the company and the pay packages offered by FPL are justified.

The Florida Public Service Commission took several measures this week aimed at addressing allegations that some agency officials improperly conversed with FPL. Some PSC commissioners and staffers have talked to FPL employees in private meetings and via phone calls and text messages -- conversations that leave no paper trail. State law restricts conversations between commissioners and employees of utilities they regulate. There's debate about whether the law applies to commissioners' chief advisors. Amid the accusations, the PSC took several actions and floated a few proposals: -Four PSC employees stepped down or went on leave -PSC Chairman Matthew Carter ordered the agency to disable both text and instant messaging on state-issued smart phones. -Commissioner Lisa Edgar asked for a review of the agency's policies on retaining public records in light of new technologies such as instant messaging. -Commissioner Nathan Skop proposed blocking agency computers from accessing instant messaging sites on Yahoo, AOL and Twitter during hearings; banning all smart phones from the PSC hearing room; and buying software that allows the PSC to log smart phone use.

After more than two million pounds of nuclear waste has piled up in South Dade over 35 years, Florida Power & Light is quietly seeking a zoning change to allow six acres of its Turkey Point site to be used for new above-ground storage casks. Environmentalists have known for a long time FPL planned to use casks but they knew little, if anything, about the need for a zoning change, which generally allows for public discussion that could lead to modifications of the utility's plans. ''It's news to me,'' said Lloyd Miller of the South Florida National Parks Trust. ''Haven't heard a thing,'' said Mark Oncavage, who follows South Florida energy issues for the Sierra Club. ``I definitely think we should have a say in this.''

Leaders and residents discuss concerns over Turkey Point and utility lines even though Florida Power & Light officials declined to attend a meeting. If you go | Nuclear Regulatory Commission meetings What: April 23 Nuclear Regulatory Commission meeting: FPL permits Where: Keys Gate Golf Club, 2300 Palm Dr., Homestead For information: Miami-Dade County Commissioner Katy Sorenson's office, 305-375-5218 What: April 28 Nuclear Regulatory Commission meeting: Turkey Point evaluation Where: Homestead City Hall, 790 N. Homestead Blvd. For information: Commissioner Katy Sorenson's office, 305-375-5218 BY TANIA VALDEMORO tvaldemoro@MiamiHerald.com Residents and elected officials, armed with questions about safety at the Turkey Point nuclear power station east of Homestead, left with no answers Thursday after Florida Power & Light executives did not appear at a community forum in Cutler Bay. Organized by Miami-Dade County Commissioner Katy Sorenson, the event at the South Dade Government Center, 10710 SW 211th St., was intended to provide citizens with information about safety practices at Turkey Point.

"* Second setback to new US reactors in January * NRG sees possible $400 mln pretax write-off NEW YORK, Jan 29 (Reuters) - NRG Energy Inc (NRG.N) CEO David Crane said Friday the company would not pursue the $10 billion construction of two nuclear reactors in Texas, if an ongoing dispute with co-owner CPS Energy causes NRG to miss out on federal loan guarantees needed to finance the project. This could be the second setback for new nuclear reactors in the United States, after FPL Group Inc (FPL.N) said this month it would halt billions of dollars in capital expenditures, including development of two new reactors, after getting a negative rate case ruling from Florida regulators."

Florida's utility regulators have crafted their vision of Florida's green energy future without answering the billion-dollar question: What is green energy? Months of intense lobbying and public hearings on how and when Florida's energy companies should go green ended on Jan. 9 with the state's Public Service Commission deciding not to decide whether nuclear power is green enough to be part of the state's mandate to reduce greenhouse gases. The issue - raised by Florida Power & Light, the state's largest producer of nuclear power - was the only issue the commission did not decide. The prickly question now goes to the legislature, where FPL is a major political player.

Florida's energy future should be "clean" - not just "renewable" - and include nuclear power as a source of green energy, according to recommendations from the staff of utility regulators released Wednesday. The 111-page report is the latest step in the debate over whether power companies can count new nuclear power toward their obligation to generate renewable energy. The report follows months of lobbying by Florida Power & Light - the state's largest utility and producer of nuclear power - to persuade regulators to create a "Clean Energy Portfolio Standard" rather than a "Renewable Portfolio Standard." Florida statues do not include nuclear power in the definition of "renewable" energy. FPL generates no renewable energy in Florida.

While the major drop in gasoline costs has given Treasure Coast residents a little breathing room, customers of Florida Power & Light Co. should brace for yet another upward bump in their bill in January. Most residents already have noticed an uptick in their power bills from an increase of about 8 percent in August. That meant an increase in a 1,000 kilowatt-hour monthly residential bill of about $8.14, from $102.63 to $110.77, the company said.

In the massive discussion that's starting to shape the future of electric power in the state for decades to come, an executive of Florida Power & Light insists that the best way to reduce greenhouse gases is to define nuclear as a renewable energy source. By doing that, FPL has told regulators it can greatly speed up the state's push to combat global warming by having 20 percent of all power come from renewable energy by 2030, rather than by 2050, which is the timeframe now being discussed by regulators.

The top nuclear operator at Turkey Point resigned after a huge outage because he felt his bosses were demanding an unsafe restart. At 1:09 one afternoon last year, 90 metal rods slid into the cores of the two nuclear reactors at Turkey Point, part of an automatic shutdown that had been triggered by a utility worker's blunder moments earlier at a substation miles away. A million customers lost power. Florida Power & Light executives ordered that the reactors be back online within 12 hours, according to court documents. The plant's top nuclear operator, David Hoffman, said that would be dangerous. When FPL executives disagreed with him, he walked out at 8 p.m., refusing to participate in actions he felt were unsafe.

Florida's two biggest electric utilities must disclose how much they pay their executives and other top employees, state utility regulators decided Tuesday. Florida Power & Light Co. immediately said it would appeal the Public Service Commission's ruling. A Progress Energy Florida spokesman said his company has not yet decided if it will take the issue to court. The five commissioners unanimously ordered the companies to disclose the compensation of those making more than $165,000, saying that information is vital to helping them decide whether to raise customers' rates in January.

The agency regulating Florida Power & Light's nuclear reactors gave the facility good marks during its annual review, but declined at a meeting Tuesday to talk about the utility's security practices. Officials from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission hosted a public meeting at Homestead City Hall to discuss their assessment of the Turkey Point nuclear power station east of Homestead. ''FPL operated Turkey Point Units 3 and 4 in a manner that preserved public health and safety,'' Marvin Sykes, branch chief of the division of nuclear projects, told the 40 or so elected officials, activists and residents in attendance.

Louise Lockwood has lived in Whispering Pines for 50 years. She says she's always worried about how close the Turkey Point Nuclear Power Plant is to her home. "If anything happens we're right there," said Lockwood. When our news partners at the Miami Herald reported a top-level plant employee resigned in protest last year, because managers allegedly wanted him to re-start a nuclear reactor before it was safe to do so, Lockwood immediately wanted to hear from the plant's owner, Florida Power and Light.

"The head of Florida Power & Light Co. left the Public Service Commission hearing on the company's rate increase, complaining that 20,000 jobs in plant construction and growth will be lost because "politics trumped economics." The PSC hearing is still going on, but the regulatory panel has been whacking away at its already reduced staff recommendations all day. FP&L had sought a $1.3 billion rate hike but the staff recommended only $357 million -- and the commission lowered that. "Today, politics trumped economics because there is no economic case for the decisions that this commission made," said Armando Olivera, the company CEO."

The Seabrook Fire Department responded on Tuesday, Dec. 9, to a report of smoke in a building at FPL Energy Seabrook Station, the nuclear power plant, according to firefighter Koko Perkins. Personnel were evacuated from the office building at the plant after smoke came from a heating system, according to Seabrook Station spokesman Al Griffith. The building is near the Science and Nature Center, on plant property, but well outside the nuclear power plant's protected zone, Griffith said.