Cumberland System of Projects, 30451-30452 [2015-12888]
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Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 102 / Thursday, May 28, 2015 / Notices
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
[Docket No. EL15–66–000]
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Southern Company Services, Inc.;
KCP&L Greater Missouri Operations
Company; The Empire District Electric
Company; Associated Electric
Cooperative, Inc.; v. Midcontinent
Independent System Operator, Inc.;
Notice of Complaint
Take notice that on May 20, 2015,
pursuant to sections 309, 205, and 206
of the Federal Power Act (FPA), 16
U.S.C. 824(e), 824(d), and 825(h) and
Rule 206 of the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission’s (Commission)
Rules of Practice and Procedure, 18 CFR
385.206, Southern Company Services,
Inc., as agent for Alabama Power
Company, Georgia Power Company,
Gulf Power Company, Mississippi
Power Company, and Southern Power
Company (Southern Companies),
KCP&L Greater Missouri Operations
Company, The Empire District Electric
Company, and Associated Electric
Cooperative, Inc. (collectively,
Complainants), filed a formal complaint
against Midcontinent Independent
System Operator, Inc., as agent and tariff
administrator of the MISO Open-Access
Transmission Tariff (MISO or
Respondent), alleging that: (1)
Respondent has levied unlawful charges
upon Complainants in violation of
section 205 of the FPA, and; (2)
Respondent’s rates for transmission
service are unjust, unreasonable, unduly
discriminatory and preferential and in
violation of established precedent under
FPA sections 205 and 206.
The Complainants certify that a copy
of the complaint has been served on the
Respondent.
Any person desiring to intervene or to
protest this filing must file in
accordance with Rules 211 and 214 of
the Commission’s Rules of Practice and
Procedure (18 CFR 385.211, 385.214).
Protests will be considered by the
Commission in determining the
appropriate action to be taken, but will
not serve to make protestants parties to
the proceeding. Any person wishing to
become a party must file a notice of
intervention or motion to intervene, as
appropriate. The Respondent’s answer
and all interventions, or protests must
be filed on or before the comment date.
The Respondent’s answer, motions to
intervene, and protests must be served
on the Complainants.
The Commission encourages
electronic submission of protests and
interventions in lieu of paper using the
VerDate Sep<11>2014
18:18 May 27, 2015
Jkt 235001
‘‘eFiling’’ link at https://www.ferc.gov.
Persons unable to file electronically
should submit an original and 5 copies
of the protest or intervention to the
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission,
888 First Street NE., Washington, DC
20426.
This filing is accessible on-line at
https://www.ferc.gov, using the
‘‘eLibrary’’ link and is available for
electronic review in the Commission’s
Public Reference Room in Washington,
DC. There is an ‘‘eSubscription’’ link on
the Web site that enables subscribers to
receive email notification when a
document is added to a subscribed
docket(s). For assistance with any FERC
Online service, please email
FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov, or call
(866) 208–3676 (toll free). For TTY, call
(202) 502–8659.
Comment Date: 5:00 p.m. Eastern
Time on June 9, 2015.
Dated: May 21, 2015.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2015–12862 Filed 5–27–15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Southeastern Power Administration
Cumberland System of Projects
Southeastern Power
Administration, DOE.
ACTION: Notice of proposed rates, public
forum, and opportunities for public
review and comment.
AGENCY:
Southeastern Power
Administration (Southeastern) proposes
to revise existing schedules of rates and
charges applicable to the sale of power
from the Cumberland System of Projects
effective for a one-year period, October
1, 2015, through September 30, 2016.
Interested persons may review the rates
and supporting studies and submit
written comments. Southeastern will
evaluate all comments received in this
process.
DATES: Written comments are due on or
before August 26, 2015. A public
information and comment forum will be
held at 2:00 p.m., on June 30, 2015.
Persons desiring to attend the forum
should notify Southeastern at least
seven (7) days before the scheduled
forum date. Persons desiring to speak at
the forum should notify Southeastern at
least three (3) days before the scheduled
forum date, so that a list of forum
participants can be prepared. Others
may speak if time permits.
ADDRESSES: The forum will be held at:
The Inn at Opryland, 2401 Music Valley
SUMMARY:
PO 00000
Frm 00021
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
30451
Drive, Nashville, TN 37214–1002.
Written comments should be submitted
to: Administrator, Southeastern Power
Administration, Department of Energy,
1166 Athens Tech Road, Elberton, GA
30635–6711.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Virgil G. Hobbs III, Southeastern Power
Administration, Department of Energy,
1166 Athens Tech Road, Elberton, GA
30635–6711, (706) 213–3800.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background of Existing Rates: The
existing schedules of rates and charges
applicable to the sale of power from the
Cumberland System of Projects are
effective through September 30, 2015.
On December 22, 2011, the Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)
confirmed and approved on a final
basis, Wholesale Power Rate Schedules
CBR–1–H, CSI–1–H, CEK–1–H, CM–1–
H, CC–1–I, CK–1–H, CTV–1–H, CTVI–
1–A, and Replacement-3 applicable to
Cumberland System of Projects power
for a period ending September 30, 2013
(137 FERC ¶ 62,249). On July 10, 2013,
the Deputy Secretary approved an
extension of the rate schedules to
September 30, 2015 (78 FR 42764).
Operational Impact of Dam Safety
Issues: In February 2007, the U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers (Corps) lowered pool
levels at the Wolf Creek and Center Hill
Projects to reduce the risk of imminent
failure of the dams due to seepage
issues. At that time the Corps also began
the process of mitigating the seepage
issues at the Wolf Creek and Center Hill
Projects. Under normal pool levels, the
marketing policy for the Cumberland
System provides peaking capacity, along
with 1500 or 1800 hours of energy
annually with each kilowatt of capacity,
to customers outside the Tennessee
Valley Authority (TVA) transmission
system. All remaining energy is
scheduled by TVA for the benefit of
customers inside the TVA system. As a
consequence of lowered pool levels due
to dam repairs, Southeastern was not
able to provide peaking capacity and
firm energy to the outside customers
due to operational restrictions.
Southeastern implemented an Interim
Operating Plan for the Cumberland
System to provide these customers with
energy that did not include capacity.
In March 2014, the Corps lifted
operating restrictions on the Wolf Creek
Project. The operating restrictions on
the Center Hill Project remain in effect.
As a consequence, Southeastern
implemented a Revised Interim
Operating Plan that provides reduced
capacity and schedulable energy to the
outside customers.
E:\FR\FM\28MYN1.SGM
28MYN1
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
30452
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 102 / Thursday, May 28, 2015 / Notices
Repayment Study: Existing rate
schedules are predicated upon an
August 2011 repayment study and other
supporting data contained in FERC
docket number EF11–13–000. The
annual revenue requirement in this
study is $59,600,000. An updated
repayment study, dated January 2015,
indicates rates are not adequate to
recover cost increases that have been
identified and therefore do not meet
repayment criteria. The additional costs
are due to numerous factors. Corps
Operation & Maintenance expenses have
exceeded estimates and current rate
schedules did not include costs
associated with the dam safety repairs of
the Wolf Creek and Center Hill Projects.
The dam repair costs, after the
application of the Dam Safety Act
(Water Resources Development Act of
1986 section 1203), are a combined
$83,200,000. The Corps has also
provided Southeastern with an updated
plan of major replacements for the
Cumberland System with the total cost
of these planned replacements at
$868,000,000. Also, TVA notified
Southeastern on March 5, 2015 they will
charge $1,009,850 per month for
delivery of capacity and energy to the
outside TVA customers. A revised
repayment study demonstrates that a
revenue increase to $78,500,000 per
year will meet repayment criteria. The
increase in the annual revenue
requirement is $18,900,000 per year, or
about 32 percent.
Applicability of the Dam Safety Act:
Under section 1203 of the Water
Resources Development Act of 1986,
otherwise known as the Dam Safety Act,
Congress capped the percentage of dam
repair costs that may be assigned to
project purposes (such as hydropower)
at 15 percent. This cap applies to dam
modification costs, ‘‘the cause of which
results from new hydrologic or seismic
data or changes in the state-of-the-art
design or construction criteria deemed
necessary for safety purposes’’. 33
U.S.C. 467n(a). When applicable, the
Dam Safety Act requires that dam safety
repair costs be recovered within thirty
years of completion of the work. If the
Dam Safety Act is not applied, 100
percent of all costs are assigned to
project purposes for cost recovery but
the thirty-year cost recovery
requirement does not attach.
Southeastern continues to discuss,
analyze and seek guidance on the issue
from other relevant agencies.
Proposed Rates: Southeastern is
proposing three rate scenarios per rate
schedule. All of the rate scenarios have
an annual revenue requirement of
$78,500,000. This annual revenue
requirement was calculated using the
VerDate Sep<11>2014
18:18 May 27, 2015
Jkt 235001
lower bound of possible costs associated
with the Wolf Creek and Center Hill
Dam repairs: 15 percent assigned to
project purposes and recovered within
thirty years of completion, an amount
that may be adjusted upward pending
final determination of the Dam Safety
Act’s applicability.
The first rate scenario includes the
rates necessary to recover costs under
the Revised Interim Operating Plan.
Under this scenario, the capacity rate at
the TVA border is $2.28 per kilowatt per
month and the energy charge is 14.79
mills per kilowatt-hour. The outside
customers would pay their portion of
the transmission credit provided TVA
for delivery of capacity and energy to
neighboring system interconnection
points, as agreed by contract between
Southeastern and TVA. This rate would
remain in effect under the Revised
Interim Operating Plan.
The second rate scenario would
recover cost from capacity and energy.
The revenue requirement under this
alternative would be $78,500,000 per
year. This scenario would be in effect if
Southeastern changes the Revised
Interim Operating Plan.
The third rate scenario is based on the
original Cumberland Marketing Policy.
All costs are recovered from capacity
and excess energy. The rates under this
alternative would be as follows:
(As of 2/1/2015 and provided for
illustrative purposes)
East Kentucky Power Cooperative:
Capacity: $1.994 per kW/Month
Energy: 13.914 mills per kWh
These rates would go into effect once
the Corps lifts the restrictions on the
operation of the Wolf Creek and Center
Hill Projects and the Revised Interim
Operating Plan and Southeastern
returns to normal operations.
The referenced repayment studies are
available for examination at 1166
Athens Tech Road, Elberton, Georgia
30635–6711. The Proposed Rate
Schedules CBR–1–I, CSI–1–I, CEK–1–I,
CM–1–I, CC–1–J, CK–1–I, CTV–1–I,
CTVI–1–B, and Replacement-3 are also
available.
Dated: May 20, 2015.
Kenneth E. Legg,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2015–12888 Filed 5–27–15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450–01–P
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
[EPA–HQ–OECA–2014–0040; FRL–9928–
41–OEI]
Third Scenario—Return to Original
Marketing Policy
Information Collection Request
Submitted to OMB for Review and
Approval; Comment Request; NSPS
for Hot Mix Asphalt Facilities
(Renewal)
Inside TVA Preference Customers
AGENCY:
Capacity and Base Energy: $3.733 per
kW/Month
Additional Energy: 13.914 mills per
kWh
Transmission: Pass-through
SUMMARY:
Cumberland System Rates
Outside TVA Preference Customers
(Excluding Customers served through
Carolina Power & Light Company or
East Kentucky Power Cooperative)
Capacity and Base Energy: $3.733 per
kW/Month
Additional Energy: 13.914 mills per
kWh
Transmission: Monthly TVA
Transmission Charge divided by
545,000
Customers Served Through Carolina
Power & Light Company
Capacity and Base Energy: $4.249 per
kW/Month
TVA Transmission: TVA rate at border
as computed above, adjusted for DEP
delivery.
DEP Transmission: $1.546 per kW/
Month
PO 00000
Frm 00022
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
The Environmental Protection
Agency has submitted an information
collection request (ICR), ‘‘NSPS for Hot
Mix Asphalt Facilities (40 CFR part 60,
subpart I) (Renewal)’’ (EPA ICR No.
1127.11, OMB Control No. 2060–0083)
to the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) for review and approval in
accordance with the Paperwork
Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).
This is a proposed extension of the ICR,
which is currently approved through
May 31, 2015. Public comments were
previously requested via the Federal
Register (79 FR 30117) on May 27, 2014
during a 60-day comment period. This
notice allows for an additional 30 days
for public comments. A fuller
description of the ICR is given below,
including its estimated burden and cost
to the public. An Agency may not
conduct or sponsor and a person is not
required to respond to a collection of
information unless it displays a
currently valid OMB control number.
E:\FR\FM\28MYN1.SGM
28MYN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 102 (Thursday, May 28, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30451-30452]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-12888]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Southeastern Power Administration
Cumberland System of Projects
AGENCY: Southeastern Power Administration, DOE.
ACTION: Notice of proposed rates, public forum, and opportunities for
public review and comment.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: Southeastern Power Administration (Southeastern) proposes to
revise existing schedules of rates and charges applicable to the sale
of power from the Cumberland System of Projects effective for a one-
year period, October 1, 2015, through September 30, 2016. Interested
persons may review the rates and supporting studies and submit written
comments. Southeastern will evaluate all comments received in this
process.
DATES: Written comments are due on or before August 26, 2015. A public
information and comment forum will be held at 2:00 p.m., on June 30,
2015. Persons desiring to attend the forum should notify Southeastern
at least seven (7) days before the scheduled forum date. Persons
desiring to speak at the forum should notify Southeastern at least
three (3) days before the scheduled forum date, so that a list of forum
participants can be prepared. Others may speak if time permits.
ADDRESSES: The forum will be held at: The Inn at Opryland, 2401 Music
Valley Drive, Nashville, TN 37214-1002. Written comments should be
submitted to: Administrator, Southeastern Power Administration,
Department of Energy, 1166 Athens Tech Road, Elberton, GA 30635-6711.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Virgil G. Hobbs III, Southeastern
Power Administration, Department of Energy, 1166 Athens Tech Road,
Elberton, GA 30635-6711, (706) 213-3800.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background of Existing Rates: The existing schedules of rates and
charges applicable to the sale of power from the Cumberland System of
Projects are effective through September 30, 2015. On December 22,
2011, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) confirmed and
approved on a final basis, Wholesale Power Rate Schedules CBR-1-H, CSI-
1-H, CEK-1-H, CM-1-H, CC-1-I, CK-1-H, CTV-1-H, CTVI-1-A, and
Replacement-3 applicable to Cumberland System of Projects power for a
period ending September 30, 2013 (137 FERC ] 62,249). On July 10, 2013,
the Deputy Secretary approved an extension of the rate schedules to
September 30, 2015 (78 FR 42764).
Operational Impact of Dam Safety Issues: In February 2007, the U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) lowered pool levels at the Wolf Creek
and Center Hill Projects to reduce the risk of imminent failure of the
dams due to seepage issues. At that time the Corps also began the
process of mitigating the seepage issues at the Wolf Creek and Center
Hill Projects. Under normal pool levels, the marketing policy for the
Cumberland System provides peaking capacity, along with 1500 or 1800
hours of energy annually with each kilowatt of capacity, to customers
outside the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) transmission system. All
remaining energy is scheduled by TVA for the benefit of customers
inside the TVA system. As a consequence of lowered pool levels due to
dam repairs, Southeastern was not able to provide peaking capacity and
firm energy to the outside customers due to operational restrictions.
Southeastern implemented an Interim Operating Plan for the Cumberland
System to provide these customers with energy that did not include
capacity.
In March 2014, the Corps lifted operating restrictions on the Wolf
Creek Project. The operating restrictions on the Center Hill Project
remain in effect. As a consequence, Southeastern implemented a Revised
Interim Operating Plan that provides reduced capacity and schedulable
energy to the outside customers.
[[Page 30452]]
Repayment Study: Existing rate schedules are predicated upon an
August 2011 repayment study and other supporting data contained in FERC
docket number EF11-13-000. The annual revenue requirement in this study
is $59,600,000. An updated repayment study, dated January 2015,
indicates rates are not adequate to recover cost increases that have
been identified and therefore do not meet repayment criteria. The
additional costs are due to numerous factors. Corps Operation &
Maintenance expenses have exceeded estimates and current rate schedules
did not include costs associated with the dam safety repairs of the
Wolf Creek and Center Hill Projects. The dam repair costs, after the
application of the Dam Safety Act (Water Resources Development Act of
1986 section 1203), are a combined $83,200,000. The Corps has also
provided Southeastern with an updated plan of major replacements for
the Cumberland System with the total cost of these planned replacements
at $868,000,000. Also, TVA notified Southeastern on March 5, 2015 they
will charge $1,009,850 per month for delivery of capacity and energy to
the outside TVA customers. A revised repayment study demonstrates that
a revenue increase to $78,500,000 per year will meet repayment
criteria. The increase in the annual revenue requirement is $18,900,000
per year, or about 32 percent.
Applicability of the Dam Safety Act: Under section 1203 of the
Water Resources Development Act of 1986, otherwise known as the Dam
Safety Act, Congress capped the percentage of dam repair costs that may
be assigned to project purposes (such as hydropower) at 15 percent.
This cap applies to dam modification costs, ``the cause of which
results from new hydrologic or seismic data or changes in the state-of-
the-art design or construction criteria deemed necessary for safety
purposes''. 33 U.S.C. 467n(a). When applicable, the Dam Safety Act
requires that dam safety repair costs be recovered within thirty years
of completion of the work. If the Dam Safety Act is not applied, 100
percent of all costs are assigned to project purposes for cost recovery
but the thirty-year cost recovery requirement does not attach.
Southeastern continues to discuss, analyze and seek guidance on the
issue from other relevant agencies.
Proposed Rates: Southeastern is proposing three rate scenarios per
rate schedule. All of the rate scenarios have an annual revenue
requirement of $78,500,000. This annual revenue requirement was
calculated using the lower bound of possible costs associated with the
Wolf Creek and Center Hill Dam repairs: 15 percent assigned to project
purposes and recovered within thirty years of completion, an amount
that may be adjusted upward pending final determination of the Dam
Safety Act's applicability.
The first rate scenario includes the rates necessary to recover
costs under the Revised Interim Operating Plan. Under this scenario,
the capacity rate at the TVA border is $2.28 per kilowatt per month and
the energy charge is 14.79 mills per kilowatt-hour. The outside
customers would pay their portion of the transmission credit provided
TVA for delivery of capacity and energy to neighboring system
interconnection points, as agreed by contract between Southeastern and
TVA. This rate would remain in effect under the Revised Interim
Operating Plan.
The second rate scenario would recover cost from capacity and
energy. The revenue requirement under this alternative would be
$78,500,000 per year. This scenario would be in effect if Southeastern
changes the Revised Interim Operating Plan.
The third rate scenario is based on the original Cumberland
Marketing Policy. All costs are recovered from capacity and excess
energy. The rates under this alternative would be as follows:
Cumberland System Rates
Third Scenario--Return to Original Marketing Policy
Inside TVA Preference Customers
Capacity and Base Energy: $3.733 per kW/Month
Additional Energy: 13.914 mills per kWh
Transmission: Pass-through
Outside TVA Preference Customers
(Excluding Customers served through Carolina Power & Light Company or
East Kentucky Power Cooperative)
Capacity and Base Energy: $3.733 per kW/Month
Additional Energy: 13.914 mills per kWh
Transmission: Monthly TVA Transmission Charge divided by 545,000
Customers Served Through Carolina Power & Light Company
Capacity and Base Energy: $4.249 per kW/Month
TVA Transmission: TVA rate at border as computed above, adjusted for
DEP delivery.
DEP Transmission: $1.546 per kW/Month
(As of 2/1/2015 and provided for illustrative purposes)
East Kentucky Power Cooperative:
Capacity: $1.994 per kW/Month
Energy: 13.914 mills per kWh
These rates would go into effect once the Corps lifts the
restrictions on the operation of the Wolf Creek and Center Hill
Projects and the Revised Interim Operating Plan and Southeastern
returns to normal operations.
The referenced repayment studies are available for examination at
1166 Athens Tech Road, Elberton, Georgia 30635-6711. The Proposed Rate
Schedules CBR-1-I, CSI-1-I, CEK-1-I, CM-1-I, CC-1-J, CK-1-I, CTV-1-I,
CTVI-1-B, and Replacement-3 are also available.
Dated: May 20, 2015.
Kenneth E. Legg,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2015-12888 Filed 5-27-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P
