Solar energy is booming across the U.S. and, for the first time, Florida is catching up to industry powerhouses Texas and California.
Despite removing climate change from its official state policy in 2024, Florida added more utility-scale solar than California last year, with over 3 gigawatts of new capacity coming online.
"This is not a fluke," said Sylvia Leyva Martinez, senior analyst at Wood Mackenzie. "Florida is now shaping national solar growth."
The surge is being driven by utilities, not rooftop panels. Florida Power & Light alone built over 70% of the state's new solar last year. A state rule lets developers skip lengthy siting reviews for projects under 75 megawatts, which speeds up construction and cuts costs.
"There's no silver bullet," said Syd Kitson, founder of Babcock Ranch, a town designed to be powered almost entirely by solar. "But one thing Florida got right is acceptance. Here, people want solar. And we're proving it works."
Babcock Ranch runs on its own microgrid and stayed online during Hurricane Ian in 2022, while much of southwest Florida went dark.
"We didn't lose power, internet, or water," said Don Bishop, a homeowner there. "That changes how you think about energy."
The economics are doing the rest. With industrial demand rising and natural gas prices climbing, solar is increasingly the cheapest option, even without subsidies.
"Utilities aren't building solar because it's green," Martinez said. "They're doing it because it's cheaper."
But new challenges are emerging.
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