NextEra Energy has agreed to pay $150 million to settle allegations that it concealed its involvement in a political interference scheme in Florida. Under a proposed settlement filed in federal court on Monday, the company will resolve related shareholder litigation.

The settlement comes about a month after NextEra and Dominion Energy announced plans to merge in a $67 billion deal. If approved, the merger would create the world's largest regulated electric utility, serving about 10 million electricity customers in Florida, Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina.

The political scandal surrounding NextEra's subsidiary, Florida Power & Light, is expected to be a focal point when Virginia utility regulators review the proposed transaction.

"NextEra... has been linked to election manipulation, surveillance of journalists, co-opting civil rights organizations, and using dark money networks to control regulators and suppress energy competition," said Clean Virginia, an advocacy group focused on political and utility regulatory reform, after the merger was announced.

In a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on April 23, NextEra stated that it had reached an agreement in March to pay $150 million to settle shareholder litigation, but specific terms were still to be finalized. The company said the payment would be covered by insurance.

Some of the allegations against NextEra include using a political consulting firm to fund "ghost" candidates to defeat state lawmakers seen as threats to Florida Power & Light, and conducting surveillance on a journalist.

According to the settlement, the amount is the largest in a securities class action in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida since the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 took effect.