NextEra Energy Resources Battery Storage Investments In 2021 Expected To Exceed $1 Billion, Said To Be Largest Ever Annual Investment By Any Power Company Worldwide

During an earnings call, Jim Robo, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NextEra Energy, Inc. said that NextEra Energy Resources's battery storage investments in 2021 are now expected to exceed $1 billion

"With the significant recent growth in our battery storage backlog, we increasingly see storage as an important stand-alone business in its own right. NextEra Energy’s battery storage investments in 2021 are now expected to exceed $1 billion, which we believe would be the largest-ever annual battery storage investment by any power company in the world," Robo said

Robo also said that Energy Resources would be largely insulated from changes in the underlying economy, and said that its well-capitalized renewable development and supply business would be poised to win customers, as smaller players may face capital constraints or more skepticism from customers in the current climate

"At Energy Resources, the portfolio is focused on long-term contracted clean energy projects with high credit quality customers, which we expect will be largely insulated from changes in the underlying economy," Robo said

"[O]ur strategic vision at Energy Resources remains unchanged and we believe the market opportunity for low-cost renewables has never been greater. In times when consumers and businesses are dealing with the challenges of economic uncertainty, we expect our customers will help ease those impacts by lowering the cost of power for their customers through new renewable generation. Reflecting this strong customer demand for renewables, the Energy Resources team had another terrific quarter of origination, adding approximately 1,600 megawatts to our backlog since the last earnings call, including our first 600 megawatts of wind projects for 2022 and beyond. Most of this quarter’s backlog additions were negotiated remotely while employees operated under stay-at-home orders. The ability to add nearly 1,600 megawatts despite these conditions is a testament to our strong customer relationships, pipeline and development skills. Also included in these backlog additions are approximately 460 megawatts of battery storage projects, almost all of which will be added to existing solar sites to take advantage of the ITC and enhance the value of our existing projects for customers," Robo said

"Energy Resources’ track record of execution has been a key competitive advantage over time. In periods of uncertainty like we are currently experiencing, we expect customers will increasingly want confidence in a company’s ability to deliver on its commitments. Energy Resources’ extensive experience, combined with our customer, supplier, contractor and financing relationships, all separate us from other developers during these challenging times. In addition, we expect that some of our competitors may falter as a result of these challenges and we will look to leverage any opportunity that this presents," Robo said

In reporting earnings, NextEra reported a lower contribution from its customer supply and trading business during the first quarter of 2020, which declined 2 cents per share (about $9 million) from the "particularly strong" results in the first quarter of last year.