North Wake News

Duke Energy Florida has announced that its battery facility in Micanopy, Alachua County, is now equipped to provide backup power during storms. This 8.25-megawatt lithium-based facility can serve approximately 800 customers for up to eight hours by automatically disconnecting from the grid when needed.

The Micanopy site is the first of Duke Energy Florida's facilities with this "islanding" capability, which became operational in January 2025, although the facility itself was placed into service in August 2022. Melissa Seixas, Duke Energy Florida state president, explained the significance of this technology: “Basically, an ‘islanded’ battery facility is to an entire community what a standard generator is to a single home or business.”

Duke Energy Florida aims for most of its six battery facilities across the state to adopt island mode functionality by 2026. This initiative is part of broader efforts to enhance grid resilience for its two million customers across a 35-county area. The company has also reinforced over 40,000 power poles and placed half of its primary power lines underground.

Additionally, more than three-quarters of Duke Energy Florida's customers benefit from self-healing technology that identifies outages and reroutes power swiftly. This system saved over 300 million outage minutes during the 2024 Hurricane Season alone.

Duke Energy Florida operates under its parent company, Duke Energy, which serves millions across several states and is investing heavily in grid upgrades and cleaner energy sources as part of an ongoing energy transition.

For further information on Duke Energy’s initiatives and operations, visit their website or follow them on social media platforms.