NextEra Energy returns to Palm Beach after a week of data-center dealmaking

NextEra Energy flew from Teterboro to Palm Beach International on Thursday evening, landing at 5:54 p.m. local time aboard its Embraer Praetor 600, tail N31MW. The 2-hour-40-minute trip capped a multi-day swing through the New York area.

The same week, NextEra Energy reported a record 4 GW of new renewable and storage contracts in the first quarter, per the company’s April 23 earnings call covered by Utility Dive and E&E News. CEO John Ketchum told analysts that surging data-center demand is driving the build-out, with the company now planning up to 41.5 GW of solar and 43 GW of battery storage by 2032. The New York trip likely included investor meetings tied to that growth.

The flight continues a pattern: N31MW spent the prior week shuttling between Palm Beach, Washington D.C., Orlando, and the San Francisco Bay Area — a route that tracks Ketchum’s push to secure hyperscaler customers and federal projects, including a proposed 9.5 GW gas build-out for the U.S. Department of Commerce and Japan, as detailed by E&E News.