Dive Brief:
- In some parts of the U.S., solar is “crowding out” wind generation, Armando Pimentel, NextEra Energy Resources CEO, said during a conference call with analysts.
- NextEra is focused on rooftop solar for commercial and industrial customers, but doesn't believe the residential market offers a good opportunity for the company, Moray Dewhurst, CFO, said.
- NextEra is considering spinning off renewable assets into a “yieldco” with more information on the possibility expected by mid-year, Dewhurst said.
Dive Insight:
NextEra officials see solar taking off. “The economics of solar have clearly improved across the board,” Pimentel said. “It's not just the overall cost of the panel or the balance of the plant, but it's also small changes in efficiency. So although wind economics have clearly improved in some areas of the countries, primarily the West and the Southwest, it's clear that solar is a better alternative.”
“A couple of years ago, we've talked about seeing more RFPs on the solar side, which we thought was a clear positive,” Pimentel said. “We continue to see that. We continue to see that even in states that don't have requirements -- renewable portfolio standards for solar.”
Even so, NextEra is also still focused on wind. The company expects to bring online in the U.S. 2,000 MW to 2,500 MW by 2016, an increase over an earlier estimate. The company expects to add about 785 MW of solar by 2016.
