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Fair Value Measurements (Policies)
3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2012
Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]  
Valuation techniques used to measure the fair value of assets and liabilities
Fair Value Measurements

NEE and FPL use several different valuation techniques to measure the fair value of assets and liabilities, relying primarily on the market approach of using prices and other market information for identical and/or comparable assets and liabilities for those assets and liabilities that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis.  NEE's and FPL's assessment of the significance of any particular input to the fair value measurement requires judgment and may affect their placement within the fair value hierarchy levels.  Non-performance risk, including the consideration of a credit valuation adjustment, is also considered in the determination of fair value for all assets and liabilities measured at fair value.

Cash Equivalents - Cash equivalents consist of short-term, highly liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less.  NEE and FPL primarily hold investments in money market funds.  The fair value of these funds is calculated using current market prices.

Special Use Funds and Other Investments - NEE and FPL hold primarily debt and equity securities directly, as well as indirectly through commingled funds.  Substantially all directly held equity securities are valued at their quoted market prices.  For directly held debt securities, multiple prices and price types are obtained from pricing vendors whenever possible, which enables cross-provider validations.  A primary price source is identified based on asset type, class or issue of each security.  Commingled funds, which are similar to mutual funds, are maintained by banks or investment companies and hold certain investments in accordance with a stated set of objectives.  The fair value of commingled funds is primarily derived from the quoted prices in active markets of the underlying securities.  Because the fund shares are offered to a limited group of investors, they are not considered to be traded in an active market.

Derivative Instruments - NEE and FPL measure the fair value of commodity contracts on a daily basis using prices observed on commodities exchanges and in the OTC markets, or through the use of industry-standard valuation techniques, such as option modeling or discounted cash flows techniques, incorporating both observable and unobservable valuation inputs.  The resulting measurements are the best estimate of fair value as represented by the transfer of the asset or liability through an orderly transaction in the marketplace at the measurement date.

Most exchange-traded derivative assets and liabilities are valued directly using unadjusted quoted prices.  For exchange-traded derivative assets and liabilities where the principal market is deemed to be inactive based on average daily volumes and open interest, the measurement is established using settlement prices from the exchanges, and therefore considered to be valued using significant other observable inputs.

NEE and FPL also enter into OTC commodity contract derivatives.  The majority of these contracts are transacted at liquid trading points, and the prices for these contracts are verified using quoted prices in active markets from exchanges, brokers or pricing services for similar contracts.  In instances where the reference markets are deemed to be inactive or do not have transactions for a similar contract, the derivative assets and liabilities may be valued using significant other observable inputs and potentially significant unobservable inputs.  In such instances, the valuation for these contracts is established using techniques including extrapolation from or interpolation between actively traded contracts, or estimated basis adjustments from liquid trading points.

NEE, through NEER, also enters into full requirements contracts, which, in many cases, meet the definition of derivatives and are measured at fair value.  These contracts typically have one or more inputs that are not observable and are significant to the valuation of the contract.  In addition, certain exchange and non-exchange traded derivative options at NEE have one or more significant inputs that are not observable, and are valued using industry-standard option models.

In all cases where NEE and FPL use significant unobservable inputs for the valuation of a commodity contract, consideration is given to the assumptions that market participants would use in valuing the asset or liability.  This consideration includes, but is not limited to, assumptions about market liquidity, volatility and contract duration as more fully described below in Significant Unobservable Inputs.

NEE uses interest rate and foreign currency swaps to mitigate and adjust interest rate and foreign currency exposure related to certain outstanding and forecasted debt issuances and borrowings.  NEE estimates the fair value of these derivatives using a discounted cash flows valuation technique based on the net amount of estimated future cash inflows and outflows related to the swap agreements.