Commission Information Collection Activities (FERC-516a); Comment Request; Extension, 21745-21747 [2014-08754]
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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 74 / Thursday, April 17, 2014 / Notices
federally-owned inventions, if, among
other things, the agency finds that the
public will be served by the granting of
the license. The statute requires that no
exclusive license may be granted unless
public notice of the intent to grant the
license has been provided, and the
agency has considered all comments
received in response to that public
notice, before the end of the comment
period.
Soil Water Monitoring Systems, LLC
of Kennewick, WA has applied for an
exclusive license to practice the
inventions embodied in U.S. Patent No.
6,752,007 and has plans for
commercialization of the inventions.
The exclusive license will be subject
to a license and other rights retained by
the U.S. Government, and other terms
and conditions to be negotiated. DOE
intends to negotiate to grant the license,
unless, within 15 days of this notice, the
Assistant General Counsel for
Technology Transfer and Intellectual
Property, Department of Energy,
Washington, DC 20585, receives in
writing any of the following, together
with supporting documents:
(i) A statement from any person
setting forth reason why it would not be
in the best interests of the United States
to grant the proposed license; or
(ii) An application for a nonexclusive
license to the invention in which
applicant states that if already has
brought the invention to practical
application or is likely to bring the
invention to practical application
expeditiously.
The Department will review all timely
written responses to this notice, and
will proceed with negotiating the
license if, after consideration of written
responses to this notice, a finding is
made that the license is in the public
interest.
Issued in Washington, DC, on April 9,
2014.
John T. Lucas,
Assistant General Counsel for Technology,
Transfer and Intellectual Property.
[FR Doc. 2014–08802 Filed 4–16–14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
TKELLEY on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
[Docket No. Ic14–11–000]
Commission Information Collection
Activities (FERC–516a); Comment
Request; Extension
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, DOE.
Notice of information collection
and request for comments.
ACTION:
In compliance with the
requirements of the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C.
3506(c)(2)(A), the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission (Commission or
FERC) is soliciting public comment on
the currently approved information
collection, [FERC–516A, ‘‘Small
Generator Interconnection Agreements’’
(OMB No. 1902–2003)].
DATES: Comments on the collection of
information are due June 16, 2014.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments
(identified by Docket No. IC14–11–000)
by either of the following methods:
• eFiling at Commission’s Web site:
https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/
efiling.asp.
• Mail/Hand Delivery/Courier:
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission,
Secretary of the Commission, 888 First
Street NE., Washington, DC 20426.
Instructions: All submissions must be
formatted and filed in accordance with
submission guidelines at: https://
www.ferc.gov/help/submissionguide.asp. For user assistance contact
FERC Online Support by email at
ferconlinesupport@ferc.gov, or by phone
at: (866) 208–3676 (toll-free), or (202)
502–8659 for TTY.
Docket: Users interested in receiving
automatic notification of activity in this
docket or in viewing/downloading
comments and issuances in this docket
may do so at https://www.ferc.gov/docsfiling/docs-filing.asp.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Ellen Brown may be reached by email
at DataClearance@FERC.gov, telephone
at (202) 502–8663, and fax at (202) 273–
0873.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: FERC–516A, Standardization of
Small Generator Interconnection
Agreements and Procedures.
OMB Control No.: 1902–0203.
Type of Request: Three-year extension
of the information collection
requirements for FERC–516A with no
changes to the current reporting
requirements.
Abstract: Under Sections 205 and 206
of the Federal Power Act (FPA) 1 the
Commission is charged with ensuring
just and reasonable electric transmission
rates and charges as well as ensuring
that jurisdictional providers do not
subject any person to any undue
prejudice or disadvantage.
The lack of consistent and readily
accessible terms and conditions for
connecting resources to the grid led to
SUMMARY:
AGENCY:
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17:28 Apr 16, 2014
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1 16
PO 00000
U.S.C. 824d and 824e.
Frm 00035
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21745
a large number of disputes between
jurisdictional transmission providers
and small generators 2 in the late 1990s
and early 2000s. In response, the
Commission directed transmission
providers to include Commissionapproved, standard, pro-forma
interconnection procedures (small
generator interconnection procedures or
SGIP) and a single uniformly applicable
interconnection agreement (small
generator interconnection agreement or
SGIA) in their open-access transmission
tariffs (OATTs). The requirement to
create and file these documents was
instituted August 2005 by Commission
Order No. 2006 3 and is codified in 18
CFR 35.28(f). This requirement set and
maintained a standard in OATTs for
consistent consideration and processing
of interconnection requests by
transmission providers.
Since the issuance of Order No. 2006,
many aspects of the energy industry
have changed including the growth of
small generator interconnection
requests 4 and the growth in solar
photovoltaic (PV) installations. These
changes have been driven, in part, by
state renewable energy goals and
policies. For example, approximately
3,300 MW of grid-connected PV
capacity were installed in the U.S. in
2012 5 compared to 79 MW in 2005, the
year Order No. 2006 was issued.6
In February 2012, pursuant to
Sections 205 and 206 of the FPA and
Rule 207 of the Commission’s Rules of
Practice and Procedures,7 and noting
that the Commission encouraged
stakeholders to submit proposed
revisions to the regulations set forth in
Order No. 2006,8 the Solar Energy
2 ‘‘Small generators’’ are generating facilities
having a capacity of no more than 20 megawatts
(MW).
3 Standardization of Small Generation
Interconnection Agreements and Procedures, Order
No. 2006, 70 FR 34189 (May 12, 2005), FERC Stats.
& Regs. ¶31,180 (2005).
4 See, e.g., Cal. Indep. Sys. Operator Corp., 133
FERC ¶ 61,223, at P 3 (2010) (stating that an
increasing volume of small generator
Interconnection Requests had created
inefficiencies); Pacific Gas & Elec. Co., 135 FERC
¶ 61,094, at P 4 (2011) (stating that increased small
generator Interconnection Requests resulted in a
backlog of 170 requests over three years); PJM
Interconnection, LLC, 139 FERC ¶ 61,079, at P 12
(2012) (stating that smaller projects comprised 66
percent of recent queue volume).
5 Sherwood, Larry, U.S. Solar Market Trends 2012
at 4, available at https://www.irecusa.org/wpcontent/uploads/2013/07/Solar-Report-Final-July2013-1.pdf.
6 U.S. Solar Market Insight Report, 2012 Year in
Review, Executive Summary Table 2.1, available at
https://www.seia.org/research-resources/us-solarmarket-insight-2012-year-in-review.
7 18 CFR 385.207 (2012).
8 SEIA Petition at 4 (citing Order No. 2006, FERC
Stats. & Regs. ¶ 31,180 at P 118).
E:\FR\FM\17APN1.SGM
17APN1
21746
Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 74 / Thursday, April 17, 2014 / Notices
Industries Association (SEIA) filed a
Petition to Initiate Rulemaking
(Petition). The Petition requested the
Commission revise the pro forma SGIA
and SGIP set forth in Order No. 2006.
SEIA asserted that the pro forma SGIP
and SGIA as applied to small solar
generation were no longer just and
reasonable, had become unduly
discriminatory, and presented
unreasonable barriers to market entry.9
SEIA noted that its Petition would apply
exclusively to solar electric generation
due to its unique characteristics.10
In 2012 the Commission issued a
Notice of Petition for Rulemaking in
Docket No. RM12–10–000 and began a
public process to explore SEIA’s
Petition through the Commission’s
formal notice and comment process as
well as technical conferences.
In November 2013, the Commission
issued Order No. 792 to amend the pro
forma Small Generator Interconnection
Procedures and pro forma Small
Generator Interconnection Agreement.
Order No. 792: (1) Incorporates
provisions that provide an
Interconnection Customer with the
option of requesting from the
Transmission Provider a pre-application
report providing existing information
about system conditions at a possible
Point of Interconnection; (2) revised the
2 megawatt (MW) threshold for
participation in the Fast Track Process
included in section 2 of the pro forma
SGIP; (3) revised the customer options
meeting and the supplemental review
following failure of the Fast Track
screens so that the supplemental review
is performed at the discretion of the
Interconnection Customer and includes
minimum load and other screens to
determine if a Small Generating Facility
may be interconnected safely and
reliably; (4) revised the pro forma SGIP
Facilities Study Agreement to allow the
Interconnection Customer the
opportunity to provide written
comments to the Transmission Provider
on the upgrades required for
interconnection; (5) revised the pro
forma SGIP and the pro forma SGIA to
specifically include energy storage
devices; and (6) clarified certain
sections of the pro forma SGIP and the
pro forma SGIA.
With these modifications, the
Commission concluded that the package
of reforms adopted in Order No. 792
will reduce the time and cost to process
small generator interconnection requests
for Interconnection Customers and
Transmission Providers, maintain
reliability, increase energy supply, and
remove barriers to the development of
new energy resources.
Type of Respondents: Jurisdictional
transmission service providers.
Estimate of Annual Burden: 11 Based
on filings received in 2013 and the
increased burden from Order No. 792,
the Commission estimates the total
Public Reporting Burden for this
information collection as:
FERC–516A (STANDARDIZATION OF SMALL GENERATOR INTERCONNECTION AGREEMENTS AND PROCEDURES)
Number of
respondents
annually
(1)
Requirements 12
Maintenance
of
Documents—Transmission Providers .................................
Filing of Agreements—Transmission Providers ....................................................
Pre-Application Report—Interconnection
Customers 14 ........................................
Pre-Application
Report—Transmission
Providers ..............................................
Supplemental Review—Interconnection
Customers ............................................
Supplemental
Review—Transmission
Providers ..............................................
Review of Required Upgrades—Interconnection Customers ..........................
Review of Required Upgrades—Transmission Providers .................................
TKELLEY on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Totals ................................................
9 SEIA
Total
number of
responses
(1) * (2) = (3)
........................
46
........................
1
........................
46
1
$72.73
46
$3,345.58
........................
$72.73
........................
95
........................
1
........................
95
25
$1,818.25
2,375
$172,733.75
........................
$1,818.25
........................
800
........................
1
........................
800
1
$72.73
800
$58,184
........................
$72.73
........................
142
........................
5.63
........................
800
2.5
$181.83
2,000
$145,460
........................
$1,024.37
........................
500
........................
1
........................
500
0.5
$35.37
250
$18,182.50
........................
$36.37
........................
142
........................
3.52
........................
500
20
$1,454.60
10,000
$727,300
........................
$5,121.83
........................
250
........................
1
........................
250
1
$72.73
250
$18,182.50
........................
$72.73
........................
142
........................
1.76
........................
250
2
$145.46
500
$36,365
........................
$256.09
........................
........................
........................
........................
........................
3,241
........................
........................
16,221
$1,179,753.33
........................
........................
Petition at 12.
at 4 (explaining that solar generation occurs
only during daylight hours when peak load
typically occurs, and solar photovoltaic technology
utilizes inverters with built-in functions that protect
the safety and reliability of the electric system).
11 The Commission defines burden as the total
time, effort, or financial resources expended by
persons to generate, maintain, retain, or disclose or
provide information to or for a Federal agency. For
10 Id.
VerDate Mar<15>2010
17:28 Apr 16, 2014
Total
annual
burden hours
& total
annual cost
(3) × (4) = (5)
Annual
number of
responses
per
respondent
(2)
Jkt 232001
further explanation of what is included in the
information collection burden, reference 5 Code of
Federal Regulations 1320.3.
12 All of the requirements for transmission
providers is mandatory. All of the requirements for
interconnection customers is voluntary.
13 The estimates for cost per response are derived
using the following formula: Average Burden Hours
per Response * $71.42 per Hour = Average Cost per
Response. This figure is the average of the salary
PO 00000
Frm 00036
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Average
burden &
cost per
response 13
(4)
Cost per
respondent
($)
(5) ÷ (1)
plus benefits for an attorney, consultant (engineer),
engineer, and administrative staff. The wages are
derived from the Bureau of Labor and Statistics at
https://bls.gov/oes/current/naics3_221000.htm and
the benefits figure from https://www.bls.gov/
news.release/ecec.nr0.htm.
14 We assume each request for a pre-application
report corresponds with one Interconnection
Customer.
E:\FR\FM\17APN1.SGM
17APN1
Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 74 / Thursday, April 17, 2014 / Notices
Comments: Comments are invited on:
(1) Whether the collection of
information is necessary for the proper
performance of the functions of the
Commission, including whether the
information will have practical utility;
(2) the accuracy of the agency’s estimate
of the burden and cost of the collection
of information, including the validity of
the methodology and assumptions used;
(3) ways to enhance the quality, utility
and clarity of the information collection;
and (4) ways to minimize the burden of
the collection of information on those
who are to respond, including the use
of automated collection techniques or
other forms of information technology.
Dated: April 11, 2014.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2014–08754 Filed 4–16–14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
[Project No. 14604–000]
TKELLEY on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Green Energy Storage Corp; Notice of
Preliminary Permit Application
Accepted for Filing and Soliciting
Comments, Motions To Intervene, and
Competing Applications
On March 18, 2014, Green Energy
Storage Corp filed an application for a
preliminary permit, pursuant to section
4(f) of the Federal Power Act (FPA),
proposing to study the feasibility of the
Ajo Pumped Storage Project to be
located off stream near the city of Ajo,
Arizona. The sole purpose of a
preliminary permit, if issued, is to grant
the permit holder priority to file a
license application during the permit
term. A preliminary permit does not
authorize the permit holder to perform
any land-disturbing activities or
otherwise enter upon lands or waters
owned by others without the owners’
express permission.
The proposed 150-megawatt closed
loop pumped storage project would use
the 1,200 feet of available head between
a new upper reservoir and an existing
open pit mine. The project consists of
the following: (1) A new 35-foot-high
upper dam with a total crest length of
6,000 feet, impounding an upper
reservoir with a maximum storage of
1,300 acre-feet; (2) an existing open pit
mine lower reservoir, with a maximum
storage of 1,500 acre-feet; (3) a penstock
connecting the two reservoirs consisting
of a 200-foot-long, 12-foot-diameter steel
pipe and a 1,150-foot-long, 12-foot-
VerDate Mar<15>2010
17:28 Apr 16, 2014
Jkt 232001
diameter vertical shaft; (4) two 75megawatt pump/turbines; (5) a 2,200foot-long, 14-foot-diameter draft tube,
extending from the turbines to the lower
reservoir; (6) a new 115-kilovolt (kV)
transmission line extending about 36
miles from the project’s substation to an
existing 115-kV transmission line
owned by Arizona Public Service; and
(7) appurtenant facilities. The estimated
average energy production of the project
would be 400 gigawatt hours.
Applicant Contact: Charles Gresham,
Green Energy Storage Company, 14747
N 87th Ln., Peoria, AZ 85381,
Telephone (602) 478–9161
FERC Contact: Jim Fargo; phone: (202)
502–6095.
Deadline for filing comments, motions
to intervene, competing applications
(without notices of intent), or notices of
intent to file competing applications: 60
days from the issuance of this notice.
Competing applications and notices of
intent must meet the requirements of 18
CFR 4.36.
The Commission strongly encourages
electronic filing. Please file comments,
motions to intervene, notices of intent,
and competing applications using the
Commission’s eFiling system at https://
www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp.
Commenters can submit brief comments
up to 6,000 characters, without prior
registration, using the eComment system
at https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/
ecomment.asp. You must include your
name and contact information at the end
of your comments. For assistance,
please contact FERC Online Support at
FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov, (866)
208–3676 (toll free), or (202) 502–8659
(TTY). In lieu of electronic filing, please
send a paper copy to: Secretary, Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission, 888
First Street NE., Washington, DC 20426.
The first page of any filing should
include docket number P–14604–000.
More information about this project,
including a copy of the application, can
be viewed or printed on the ‘‘eLibrary’’
link of Commission’s Web site at
https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/
elibrary.asp. Enter the docket number
(P–14604) in the docket number field to
access the document. For assistance,
contact FERC Online Support.
Dated: April 10, 2014.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2014–08667 Filed 4–16–14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
PO 00000
Frm 00037
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21747
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
[Docket No. CP14–4–001]
Texas Eastern Transmission, LP;
Notice of Application
Take notice that on April 7, 2014,
Texas Eastern Transmission, (Texas
Eastern), having its principal place of
business at 5400 Westheimer Court,
Houston, Texas, 77056, filed an
application in Docket No. CP14–4–001
pursuant to Section 7(b) and Section
7(c) of the Natural Gas Act (NGA), and
Part 157 of the Commission’s
regulations, for a certificate of public
convenience and necessity to construct
its Emerald Longwall Mine Project. On
October 10, 2013, Texas Eastern filed an
application for a certificate of public
convenience and necessity (Docket No.
CP14–4–000), and had received an
Order Issuing Certificate and Approving
Abandonment on January 29, 2014. The
January 29 Order authorized the
excavation, elevation, replacement and
abandonment of certain pipeline and
appurtenant facilities due to the
anticipated longwall mining activities of
Panel D1 of Emerald Coal Resources,
LP’s (Emerald) coal mine in Greene
County, Pennsylvania.
Emerald has since informed Texas
Eastern that, in addition to Panel D1,
mining activities are now anticipated at
Emerald’s Panel D2 and are expected to
impact Texas Eastern beginning the first
quarter of 2015. The Texas Eastern
facilities to be impacted by potential
ground subsidence resulting from
longwall mining activities at Panel D2
are sections of the same pipelines,
immediately east of Lines 1, 2, 10, 15
and 25, that were described in the
January 29 Order related to Panel D1.
Texas Eastern proposes to excavate,
elevate, replace, and/or abandon by
removal certain sections of five different
pipelines and appurtenant facilities
located in Greene County, Pennsylvania,
all as more fully set forth in the
application, which is on file with the
Commission and open to public
inspection. This filing may also be
viewed on the web at https://
www.ferc.gov using the ‘‘eLibrary’’ link.
Enter the docket number excluding the
last three digits in the docket number
field to access the document. For
assistance, contact FERC at
FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov or call
toll-free, (886) 208–3676 or TYY, (202)
502–8659.
Any questions regarding this
application should be directed to Lisa
A. Connolly, General Manager, Rates
E:\FR\FM\17APN1.SGM
17APN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 74 (Thursday, April 17, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21745-21747]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-08754]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket No. Ic14-11-000]
Commission Information Collection Activities (FERC-516a); Comment
Request; Extension
AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, DOE.
ACTION: Notice of information collection and request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction
Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A), the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission (Commission or FERC) is soliciting public comment on the
currently approved information collection, [FERC-516A, ``Small
Generator Interconnection Agreements'' (OMB No. 1902-2003)].
DATES: Comments on the collection of information are due June 16, 2014.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments (identified by Docket No. IC14-11-
000) by either of the following methods:
eFiling at Commission's Web site: https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp.
Mail/Hand Delivery/Courier: Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, Secretary of the Commission, 888 First Street NE.,
Washington, DC 20426.
Instructions: All submissions must be formatted and filed in
accordance with submission guidelines at: https://www.ferc.gov/help/submission-guide.asp. For user assistance contact FERC Online Support
by email at ferconlinesupport@ferc.gov, or by phone at: (866) 208-3676
(toll-free), or (202) 502-8659 for TTY.
Docket: Users interested in receiving automatic notification of
activity in this docket or in viewing/downloading comments and
issuances in this docket may do so at https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/docs-filing.asp.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ellen Brown may be reached by email at
DataClearance@FERC.gov, telephone at (202) 502-8663, and fax at (202)
273-0873.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: FERC-516A, Standardization of Small Generator
Interconnection Agreements and Procedures.
OMB Control No.: 1902-0203.
Type of Request: Three-year extension of the information collection
requirements for FERC-516A with no changes to the current reporting
requirements.
Abstract: Under Sections 205 and 206 of the Federal Power Act (FPA)
\1\ the Commission is charged with ensuring just and reasonable
electric transmission rates and charges as well as ensuring that
jurisdictional providers do not subject any person to any undue
prejudice or disadvantage.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ 16 U.S.C. 824d and 824e.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The lack of consistent and readily accessible terms and conditions
for connecting resources to the grid led to a large number of disputes
between jurisdictional transmission providers and small generators \2\
in the late 1990s and early 2000s. In response, the Commission directed
transmission providers to include Commission-approved, standard, pro-
forma interconnection procedures (small generator interconnection
procedures or SGIP) and a single uniformly applicable interconnection
agreement (small generator interconnection agreement or SGIA) in their
open-access transmission tariffs (OATTs). The requirement to create and
file these documents was instituted August 2005 by Commission Order No.
2006 \3\ and is codified in 18 CFR 35.28(f). This requirement set and
maintained a standard in OATTs for consistent consideration and
processing of interconnection requests by transmission providers.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ ``Small generators'' are generating facilities having a
capacity of no more than 20 megawatts (MW).
\3\ Standardization of Small Generation Interconnection
Agreements and Procedures, Order No. 2006, 70 FR 34189 (May 12,
2005), FERC Stats. & Regs. ]31,180 (2005).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Since the issuance of Order No. 2006, many aspects of the energy
industry have changed including the growth of small generator
interconnection requests \4\ and the growth in solar photovoltaic (PV)
installations. These changes have been driven, in part, by state
renewable energy goals and policies. For example, approximately 3,300
MW of grid-connected PV capacity were installed in the U.S. in 2012 \5\
compared to 79 MW in 2005, the year Order No. 2006 was issued.\6\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ See, e.g., Cal. Indep. Sys. Operator Corp., 133 FERC ]
61,223, at P 3 (2010) (stating that an increasing volume of small
generator Interconnection Requests had created inefficiencies);
Pacific Gas & Elec. Co., 135 FERC ] 61,094, at P 4 (2011) (stating
that increased small generator Interconnection Requests resulted in
a backlog of 170 requests over three years); PJM Interconnection,
LLC, 139 FERC ] 61,079, at P 12 (2012) (stating that smaller
projects comprised 66 percent of recent queue volume).
\5\ Sherwood, Larry, U.S. Solar Market Trends 2012 at 4,
available at https://www.irecusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Solar-Report-Final-July-2013-1.pdf.
\6\ U.S. Solar Market Insight Report, 2012 Year in Review,
Executive Summary Table 2.1, available at https://www.seia.org/research-resources/us-solar-market-insight-2012-year-in-review.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
In February 2012, pursuant to Sections 205 and 206 of the FPA and
Rule 207 of the Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedures,\7\ and
noting that the Commission encouraged stakeholders to submit proposed
revisions to the regulations set forth in Order No. 2006,\8\ the Solar
Energy
[[Page 21746]]
Industries Association (SEIA) filed a Petition to Initiate Rulemaking
(Petition). The Petition requested the Commission revise the pro forma
SGIA and SGIP set forth in Order No. 2006. SEIA asserted that the pro
forma SGIP and SGIA as applied to small solar generation were no longer
just and reasonable, had become unduly discriminatory, and presented
unreasonable barriers to market entry.\9\ SEIA noted that its Petition
would apply exclusively to solar electric generation due to its unique
characteristics.\10\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\7\ 18 CFR 385.207 (2012).
\8\ SEIA Petition at 4 (citing Order No. 2006, FERC Stats. &
Regs. ] 31,180 at P 118).
\9\ SEIA Petition at 12.
\10\ Id. at 4 (explaining that solar generation occurs only
during daylight hours when peak load typically occurs, and solar
photovoltaic technology utilizes inverters with built-in functions
that protect the safety and reliability of the electric system).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
In 2012 the Commission issued a Notice of Petition for Rulemaking
in Docket No. RM12-10-000 and began a public process to explore SEIA's
Petition through the Commission's formal notice and comment process as
well as technical conferences.
In November 2013, the Commission issued Order No. 792 to amend the
pro forma Small Generator Interconnection Procedures and pro forma
Small Generator Interconnection Agreement.
Order No. 792: (1) Incorporates provisions that provide an
Interconnection Customer with the option of requesting from the
Transmission Provider a pre-application report providing existing
information about system conditions at a possible Point of
Interconnection; (2) revised the 2 megawatt (MW) threshold for
participation in the Fast Track Process included in section 2 of the
pro forma SGIP; (3) revised the customer options meeting and the
supplemental review following failure of the Fast Track screens so that
the supplemental review is performed at the discretion of the
Interconnection Customer and includes minimum load and other screens to
determine if a Small Generating Facility may be interconnected safely
and reliably; (4) revised the pro forma SGIP Facilities Study Agreement
to allow the Interconnection Customer the opportunity to provide
written comments to the Transmission Provider on the upgrades required
for interconnection; (5) revised the pro forma SGIP and the pro forma
SGIA to specifically include energy storage devices; and (6) clarified
certain sections of the pro forma SGIP and the pro forma SGIA.
With these modifications, the Commission concluded that the package
of reforms adopted in Order No. 792 will reduce the time and cost to
process small generator interconnection requests for Interconnection
Customers and Transmission Providers, maintain reliability, increase
energy supply, and remove barriers to the development of new energy
resources.
Type of Respondents: Jurisdictional transmission service providers.
Estimate of Annual Burden: \11\ Based on filings received in 2013
and the increased burden from Order No. 792, the Commission estimates
the total Public Reporting Burden for this information collection as:
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\11\ The Commission defines burden as the total time, effort, or
financial resources expended by persons to generate, maintain,
retain, or disclose or provide information to or for a Federal
agency. For further explanation of what is included in the
information collection burden, reference 5 Code of Federal
Regulations 1320.3.
\12\ All of the requirements for transmission providers is
mandatory. All of the requirements for interconnection customers is
voluntary.
\13\ The estimates for cost per response are derived using the
following formula: Average Burden Hours per Response * $71.42 per
Hour = Average Cost per Response. This figure is the average of the
salary plus benefits for an attorney, consultant (engineer),
engineer, and administrative staff. The wages are derived from the
Bureau of Labor and Statistics at https://bls.gov/oes/current/naics3_221000.htm and the benefits figure from https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.nr0.htm.
\14\ We assume each request for a pre-application report
corresponds with one Interconnection Customer.
FERC-516A (Standardization of Small Generator Interconnection Agreements and Procedures)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total annual
Annual number Total number Average burden hours
Number of of responses of responses burden & cost & total Cost per
Requirements \12\ respondents per (1) * (2) = per response annual cost respondent
annually (1) respondent (2) (3) \13\ (4) (3) x (4) = ($) (5) / (1)
(5)
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Maintenance of Documents--Transmission Providers........ .............. .............. .............. 1 46 ..............
46 1 46 $72.73 $3,345.58 $72.73
Filing of Agreements--Transmission Providers............ .............. .............. .............. 25 2,375 ..............
95 1 95 $1,818.25 $172,733.75 $1,818.25
Pre-Application Report--Interconnection Customers \14\.. .............. .............. .............. 1 800 ..............
800 1 800 $72.73 $58,184 $72.73
Pre-Application Report--Transmission Providers.......... .............. .............. .............. 2.5 2,000 ..............
142 5.63 800 $181.83 $145,460 $1,024.37
Supplemental Review--Interconnection Customers.......... .............. .............. .............. 0.5 250 ..............
500 1 500 $35.37 $18,182.50 $36.37
Supplemental Review--Transmission Providers............. .............. .............. .............. 20 10,000 ..............
142 3.52 500 $1,454.60 $727,300 $5,121.83
Review of Required Upgrades--Interconnection Customers.. .............. .............. .............. 1 250 ..............
250 1 250 $72.73 $18,182.50 $72.73
Review of Required Upgrades--Transmission Providers..... .............. .............. .............. 2 500 ..............
142 1.76 250 $145.46 $36,365 $256.09
���������������������������������������������������������
Totals.............................................. .............. .............. .............. .............. 16,221 ..............
.............. .............. 3,241 .............. $1,179,753.33 ..............
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[[Page 21747]]
Comments: Comments are invited on: (1) Whether the collection of
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of
the Commission, including whether the information will have practical
utility; (2) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden and
cost of the collection of information, including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality,
utility and clarity of the information collection; and (4) ways to
minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are
to respond, including the use of automated collection techniques or
other forms of information technology.
Dated: April 11, 2014.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2014-08754 Filed 4-16-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P
