FPL Donates $1 Million-Plus Capital Expansion Gift to Loggerhead Marinelife Center

JUPITER, FL – October 31, 2017 – The noteworthy gift was announced to a sold out crowd at LMC’s Ninth Annual Go Blue Awards Luncheon by Eric Silagy, president and chief executive officer at FPL.  

The gift will double the size of the enhanced outdoor FPL Sea Turtle Hospital Yard at Loggerhead Marinelife Center, allowing the Center to treat more injured sea turtles, engage with more visitors and students and add new FPL "Solar Trees," providing clean solar energy to the power grid.

“FPL is one of the largest clean energy providers in the world, with a long-standing commitment to environmental conservation,” said Jack E. Lighton, LMC president & CEO. “For over three decades, FPL has supported our Center here in Juno Beach, located adjacent to one of the planet’s most important sea turtle nesting beaches. With FPL's donation, LMC has raised 50 percent of our total $14 million goal in just eight months. The support we are receiving from our community and corporate partners is truly humbling."

The expanded FPL Sea Turtle Hospital Yard will also feature new exhibits – one showcasing FPL's Loggerhead Solar Energy Center and one showcasing Manatee Lagoon--An FPL Eco-Discovery CenterTM in Riviera Beach, Florida.

“Supporting programs at our facilities or local institutions that benefit the environment is one of the ways FPL contributes to the sustainability of communities where our employees work and live. That’s why we work closely with federal, state and community organizations such as Loggerhead Marinelife Center to help minimize impacts on natural resources and protect the Sunshine State’s wild treasures such as endangered sea turtles,” said Silagy, president and CEO, FPL. “Loggerhead Marinelife Center has a significant role to play in educating the next generation about the importance of conservation and caring for this planet’s special creatures.”

Ten years ago, when LMC expanded into its current facility, FPL generously supported the expansion with a leadership gift that helped the construction of the Center’s original FPL Sea Turtle Hospital Yard. In just 10 years, LMC has significantly amplified its conservation and education impact with FPL’s support.

Since 2007, the FPL Sea Turtle Hospital Yard at LMC has:

• Received and educated more than two million guests
• Rehabilitated more than 1,000 threatened and endangered sea turtles which were later released into the wild
• Saved and relocated more than 10,000 sea turtle hatchlings
• "Welcomed” more than one million virtual guests to the FPL Live Sea Turtle Web Cam, showcasing the hospital’s life-saving efforts in real time

In addition to both transformational leadership gifts, FPL team members have donated more than 1,000 volunteer hours at the Center, particularly helping to renovate areas of LMC during the company’s annual Power to Care Day. 

About Loggerhead Marinelife Center: 

Loggerhead Marinelife Center is a non-profit sea turtle hospital that promotes conservation of ocean ecosystems with a focus on threatened and endangered sea turtles. The Center features an on-site campus hospital, research laboratory, educational exhibits and aquariums, and also operates the Juno Beach Pier, a pier that hosts world-class fishing and sightseeing. Situated on one of the world’s most important sea turtle nesting beaches, Loggerhead Marinelife Center is open daily and hosts over 300,000 guests free-of-charge each year.

 About FPL:

Florida Power & Light Company

Florida Power & Light Company is the third-largest electric utility in the United States, serving nearly 5 million customer accounts or an estimated 10 million people across nearly half of the state of Florida. FPL's typical 1,000-kWh residential customer bill is approximately 25 percent lower than the latest national average and, in 2016, was the lowest in Florida among reporting utilities for the seventh year in a row. FPL's service reliability is better than 99.98 percent, and its highly fuel-efficient power plant fleet is one of the cleanest among all utilities nationwide. The company received the top ranking in the southern U.S. among large electric providers, according to the J.D. Power 2016 Electric Utility Residential Customer Satisfaction StudySM, and was recognized in 2017 as one of the most trusted U.S. electric utilities by Market Strategies International. A leading Florida employer with approximately 8,900 employees, FPL is a subsidiary of Juno Beach, Florida-based NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE), a clean energy company widely recognized for its efforts in sustainability, ethics and diversity, and has been ranked No. 1 in the electric and gas utilities industry in Fortune's 2017 list of "World's Most Admired Companies." NextEra Energy is also the parent company of NextEra Energy Resources, LLC, which, together with its affiliated entities, is the world's largest generator of renewable energy from the wind and sun. \