November 1, 2002
FPL Group completes acquisition of controlling interest in
Seabrook nuclear plant
JUNO BEACH, FL - FPL Group, Inc. (NYSE: FPL) today announced
it has completed the acquisition of a controlling interest in the
Seabrook Nuclear Generating Station in New Hampshire from a consortium
of owners. FPL Group and the owners of the Seabrook Station originally
announced the purchase agreement on April 15, 2002.
Members of the Seabrook consortium selling their interests include:
Northeast Utilities (NYSE: NU), the United Illuminating Company (NYSE:
UIL), BayCorp Holdings (AMEX: MWH), National Grid Transco plc (LSE:NGT
and NYSE: NGG), NSTAR (NYSE: NST) and the New Hampshire Electric
Cooperative. The remaining interests are being retained by Massachusetts
Municipal Wholesale Electric Company, Taunton Municipal Lighting
Plant and Hudson Light & Power Department.
Under the terms of the agreement, FPL Group agreed to purchase an
88.2 percent interest in the 1,161-megawatt Seabrook Station for
a total of $837 million, subject to certain adjustments at closing.
Net of these adjustments, the final transaction value is $798 million.
"This acquisition strengthens our competitive position in the
Northeast and is an excellent complement to our existing portfolio
in the region," said Lew Hay, chairman and chief executive officer
of FPL Group. "Seabrook provides a significant low-cost, reliable
power supply for FPL Energy to market in conjunction with the rest
of our Northeast capacity.
"A testament to the attractiveness of this plant is our recent
progress in marketing its output. We have 94 percent of Seabrook's
capacity already under contract for 2003 and more than 50 percent
for 2004 and 2005. The average prices for each year are above those
we included in our pro forma financial analysis supporting the decision
to make the acquisition."
Seabrook Station will become a part of FPL Energy, the independent
power producer subsidiary of FPL Group. With the addition of Seabrook
and the 550-megawatt Rhode Island Energy Center, which is expected
to begin commercial operation next week, FPL Energy will have more
than 3,000 megawatts of power generation assets in the Northeast.
The company owns and operates a diversified fleet of nuclear, oil,
natural gas and hydroelectric facilities in the region. FPL Energy
is also the largest producer and operator of wind generation assets
in the country. In total, it operates 79 generating facilities in
16 states, with more than 6,500 megawatts of capacity.
FPL Energy will draw on the experience of the existing Seabrook
nuclear team and on the expertise of its sister subsidiary, Florida
Power & Light Company (FPL), to manage and operate Seabrook.
FPL's nuclear plants are similar in design to Seabrook. The company's
two-unit 1,386-megawatt Turkey Point plant is a pressurized water
reactor located 25 miles south of Miami. The two-unit, 1,678-megawatt
St. Lucie plant is also a pressurized water reactor located midway
between Ft. Pierce and Stuart on the east coast of Florida.
Both Turkey Point and St. Lucie have consistently maintained the
highest safety and operational performance based upon the Nuclear
Regulatory Commission's safety indicators as well as the World Association
of Nuclear Operators' overall performance index.
"Seabrook's employees share our commitment to the safe and
reliable operation of the plant. They have an excellent safety and
performance record, and we will learn from them as we share best
practices among our nuclear plants. We look forward to combining
our operations and further enhancing the performance of the plant," said
Art Stall, senior vice president of FPL's nuclear division.
Seabrook's employees are now FPL Energy employees. FPL Group agreed
to honor labor agreements and offer employment for all Seabrook employees
at comparable wages and benefits as set forth in the purchase and
sale agreement.
"We have a long-standing corporate belief that community involvement
and support are critical elements of our success," said Mr.
Hay. "We appreciate the warm welcome we have received and look
forward to developing a successful relationship with our neighbors
in New Hampshire and Massachusetts," he added.
FPL Group, with annual revenues of more than $8 billion, is
nationally known as a high quality, efficient, and customer-driven
organization focused on energy-related products and services. With
a growing presence in 24 states, it is widely recognized as one
of the country's premier power companies. Its principal subsidiary,
Florida Power & Light Company, serves approximately 4 million
customer accounts in Florida. FPL Energy, LLC, an FPL Group energy-generating
subsidiary, is a leader in producing electricity from clean and
renewable fuels. Additional information is available on the Internet
at
www.fplgroup.com,
www.fpl.com and
www.fplenergy.com.
Safe Harbor Statement: Any statements made herein about future operating
results or other future events are forward-looking statements under
the Safe Harbor Provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform
Act of 1995. Actual results may differ substantially from such forward-looking
statements. A discussion of factors that could cause actual results
or events to vary is contained in FPL Group's most recent SEC Form
10-Q.

|