INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — Florida Power & Light Co. received the green light to build a new 476-acre solar energy center off Oslo Road.

FPL plans to build the 74.5 megawatt facility at the northeast corner of Oslo Road and 122 Avenue Southwest — about 4 miles west of Interstate 95 on former citrus groves, FPL project manager Melanie Roger told county commissioners at their meeting last week. Commissioners approved the site plan.

"Solar energy centers make great neighbors," Roger said. Once built, the facility is virtually silent and only operates in the daytime, she said. "Solar energy is our crop and we harvest it in a way that is beneficial to our customers and our community."

Construction is expected to begin next year, and should be completed by early 2021, FPL records show.

The solar plant, to be named the FPL Orange Blossom Solar Energy Center, is expected to include solar panels and an on-site electrical substation, according to county records. About 131 acres will remain undeveloped at this time, county Senior Planner Ryan Sweeney said in an Aug. 2 memorandum to County Administrator Jason Brown.

FPL currently operates 18 solar plants, including two in Indian River County. Blue Cypress Solar Energy Center and Indian River Solar Energy Center, which operate at 74.5 megawatts, opened last year in the southern part of the county. Each plant is able to generate enough solar energy to power 15,000 homes, according to FPL.

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