FPL wants to get into the fracking business

From the Palm Beach Post comes this article on FPL's bid to drill its own natural gas. Click title for link. From the article:

FPL wants the PSC (Public Service Commission) to approve its proposed partnership with PetroQuest to produce gas from up to 38 wells in the Woodford Shale region. The gas would be extracted through hydraulic fracturing or “fracking.” FPL currently spends about $3 billion a year to buy natural gas to power its plants including its modernized Riviera Beach and Cape Canaveral facilities.

FPL is also asking the PSC to approve guidelines that would allow it to enter into future gas production projects of up to $750 million a year, including the PetroQuest project. If FPL’s deal is approved, the company would become the first regulated electric utility to drill for its own natural gas.

Sam Forrest, FPL’s vice president of energy marketing and trading, and its attorney John Butler called the approach innovative and exciting.

Associate Public Counsel Erik Sayler said that drilling for natural gas is not a core function of supplying electricity. FPL passes the cost of fuel on to customers without making a profit on it through what’s called the “fuel clause.” But if the joint venture is approved, it would be making a profit for its shareholders while shifting the risk to customers, he said.