In the last two days, two of the nation's largest utlities and a California solar company have announced $5-billion investment in clean energy, and plans for enough solar thermal electricity to power more than 1-million homes.

FPL Group, parent of Florida Power & Light, announced $2.4-billion Wednesday in carbon-dioxide reducing measures, including $1.5-billion that will pay for a 300 megawatt solar thermal power station in Florida.

Today, PG&E and Ausra announced another $2.6-billion. Together, the three companies have committed to build more than 2,000 megawatts of solar thermal.

These new utility-scale solar plants can produce electricity at a price comparable with conventional fossil-fuel power plants, Ausra claims.

Click here to learn more about solar thermal energy, or CSP as it is also known. Click here for more information from the Energy Information Administration.

Click here to read more about FPL's solar announcement in today's St Petersburg Times.

-By Asjylyn Loder, Times Staff Writer