00:01Keeping the lights on through hurricanes is always a challenge.
00:06Last year's one-two punch of Helene then Milton sent several power companies into overdrive to find new power options.
00:13It was a horrible, horrible hurricane season. And when it hits that hard, sometimes it takes days to restore, not just eight hours.
00:21Duke Energy invested in alternative energy sources, including what they call battery islands.
00:26These batteries are just one of many tools that we use to keep those lights on.
00:31It's very much like your home generator, just a much, much bigger size. And of course, for a lot more people.
00:38This 8.25 megawatt lithium battery facility can disconnect from the power grid to provide backup power to 800 people for up to eight hours.
00:48Duke has six battery island facilities that will be implemented around Florida over the next year.
00:54One of many ways to breach the gap during widespread outages.
00:58It will always take a variety of different technology to keep the lights on.
01:04So whether it's solar, it's battery or our gas generated or gas generated plants, it's always going to take a wide variety of mixture for us to be able to provide energy.
01:18So it's really important for us to use a really broad variety of energy.
01:23And that's the best way for us to keep the lights on.
01:26From summer storms to tropical weather or more, Duke says it's not a matter of where the next storm will come, but when.
