U.S. Faces Extended Power Outages, Largest Grid Builder Says

(Bloomberg) — The U.S. faces longer power outages resulting from storms this year after utilities cut spending on maintenance by as much as 50 percent, according to Quanta Services Inc., the world

Quanta, based in Houston, expects 2010 revenue from maintaining power lines and providing other electricity- distribution services to be little changed following a decline in 2009 because of the spending slowdown.

FPL Group Inc., which was fined a record $25 million for a Florida power failure, halted some projects targeting improvements in reliability in the state after it got a lower- than-requested rate increase on Jan. 13.

The Florida Public Service Commission also turned down a request for an increase in a storm-damage reserve from Raleigh, North Carolina-based Progress Energy Inc. earlier this month.

Bloomberg