NextEra Energy, Inc. notched a legal victory on Sept. 23 when a federal court dismissed antitrust claims accusing the electricity supplier of stalling permits for a rival’s billion-dollar project.
The ruling comes roughly a year after energy company Avangrid, Inc. alleged NextEra hindered its market entry through regulatory, legal, and political channels, costing the company more than $350 million for the delay.
In its complaint, Avangrid said NextEra is freezing out competitors by holding off an upgrade to a circuit breaker at its Seabrook Station nuclear plant. The plant allows large generation projects to connect to the grid, and the breaker — which cuts off the station if there’s a fault on the grid — needed capacity to handle greater electrical load.
U.S. District Judge Mark Mastroianni, in his memorandum order, said that Avangrid “did not need to use transmission infrastructure owned or operated by NextEra to participate in the relevant market.” Entry barriers are also “insufficient evidence of monopoly power,” added Mastroianni.
NextEra shares jumped 2.1% the following day and closed the week at $75.85 — finally breaking past the low $70s range seen throughout September.
While the Florida-based company scored this legal victory, NextEra’s subsidiary XPLR Infrastructure, LP faces a class action lawsuit over alleged securities fraud. The new case points to the legal scrutiny common in the utilities sector.
“Lawsuits are something that all utilities face over time,” said James West, a managing director and head of energy and power research at Melius Research. Because utility companies provide essential services, West added, they function like monopolies and are regulated. “Regulations are in place to protect against monopoly power.”
NextEra owns and operates 11 power generation plants in New England, including the nuclear Seabrook Station, with a combined capacity of over 2,700 megawatts (MW).
Avangrid’s New England Clean Energy Connect project is expected to supply 1,200 MW of hydropower energy from Canada to New England. One of the project’s key components, the transmission line, is already under construction and expected to be completed in 2026.