[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 114 (Wednesday, June 15, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-14554]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: June 15, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Energy Information Administration

 

Forms; Availability, etc.: Coordinated Regional Bulk Power Supply 
Program Report

AGENCY: Energy Information Administration (EIA), DOE.

ACTION: Solicitation of comments on proposed revisions to Form OE-411, 
``Coordinated Regional Bulk Power Supply Program Report,'' and its 
filing frequency.

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SUMMARY: EIA, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and 
respondent burden (required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980, 
Public Law No. 96-511, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), conducts a presurvey 
consultation program to provide the general public and other Federal 
agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing 
reporting forms. This program helps to ensure that requested data can 
be provided in the desired format, reporting burden is minimized, 
reporting forms are clearly understood, and the impact of data 
collection requirements on respondents can be properly assessed. 
Currently, EIA is soliciting comments concerning proposed revisions to 
the Form OE-411, ``Coordinated Regional Bulk Power Supply Program 
Report'' and its filing cycle.
    Any changes to Form OE-411, determined to be necessary, based on 
evaluation of comments received in response to this notice will be 
reflected in and apply to the data submission scheduled for April 1, 
1995.

DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before July 15, 1994. 
If you anticipate that you will submit comments, but cannot do so 
within the period of time allowed by this notice, please advise the 
contact listed below. An additional 30 days may be allowed.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to Dennis K. Taillie, Director, Office of 
Emergency Planning, 1000 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585 
(Phone number (202) 586-3271, FAX (202) 586-1737).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION OR TO OBTAIN COPIES OF THE EXISTING FORM AND 
INSTRUCTIONS: Requests for additional information or copies of the form 
and instructions should be directed to Mr. Taillie at the address 
listed above.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
II. Current Actions
III. Request for comments

I. Background

    Among the documents currently used to collect U.S. electric power 
system data is Form OE-411 (Coordinated Regional Bulk Power Supply 
Program Report). Formerly, authority for the Form OE-411 data 
collection was delegated to the Office of Emergency Planning and 
Operations (OE) within the Department of Energy. The OE organization no 
longer exists, but its functions relevant to the Form are now in the 
Office of Emergency Planning, Assistant Secretary for Policy, Planning, 
and Program Evaluation; and the Office of Emergency Management, 
Director of Nonproliferation and National Security.
    EIA also has functions relevant to the Form. In order to fulfill 
its responsibilities under the Federal Energy Administration Act of 
1974 (Pub. L. No. 93-275), and the Department of Energy Organization 
Act (Pub. L. No. 95-91), EIA is obliged to carry out a central, 
comprehensive, and unified energy data and information program. This 
program will collect, evaluate, assemble, analyze, and disseminate data 
and information related to energy resource reserves, production, demand 
and technology, and related economic and statistical information 
relevant to the adequacy of energy resources to meet demands in the 
near and longer term future for the Nation's economic and social needs.
    The Form annually collects data needed to assess the adequacy and 
reliability of U.S. bulk power supply for a 10-year advance period. 
This assessment is necessary for DOE to fulfill the requirements of 
section 202(a) of the Federal Power Act, as amended.
    Supplemented by additional reports published by the North American 
Electric Reliability Council (NERC), EIA and others, the data in the 
Form enable DOE to perform its assigned tasks, which include:

     Assessment of the adequacy of the U.S. electric power 
supply;
     Assessment of the vulnerability of the U.S. electric 
power supply to disruptions from all causes, and evaluation of the 
risks of such disruptions; and
     Energy-related support activities designated by the 
Federal Response Plan (the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and 
Emergency Assistance Act, Public Law 93-228, as amended).

    The supplemental additional reports noted above include NERC's 10 
year forward reliability assessment and its yearly pre-season and post-
season summer and winter operations assessments.
    The Form is filed with the DOE annually on April 1 by each of the 
Regional Electric Reliability Councils of NERC in the United States. 
There are nine Councils in the contiguous U.S. and one in Alaska. No 
Council has been established by the electric utilities in Hawaii. Each 
Council files Form OE-411 with DOE and provides copies to the Federal 
Energy Regulatory Commission and to the Public Service Commission of 
each State that is wholly or partly within the Council's boundaries. 
The DOE makes the OE-411 reports available to the public for inspection 
and copying in its Office of Freedom of Information Reading Room at its 
Washington, DC, headquarters, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., 
Washington, DC 20585.
    The Form collects numerical and descriptive information concerning 
regional electric power supply systems. The numerical information 
consists of historic data and data projected for a 10-year advance 
period. The descriptive data consist of each Council's assessment of 
the projected reliability of the bulk power supply in its region over 
the next five years, and material concerning planning and operating 
practices of the Council.
    Form OE-411 originated as ``Appendix A'' of Order 383-2, issued by 
the then Federal Power Commission on April 10, 1970. Since then, the 
Form has been incrementally revised from time-to-time and transferred 
to the jurisdiction of several groups within DOE, being variously 
designated as ERA-411, EP-411, IE-411 and currently OE-411. The title 
``Coordinated Regional Bulk Power Supply Program Report'' has not been 
changed, as it reflects the continuing focus and purpose of the 
document.
    The concept of regional electric power supply, coordinated for the 
purposes of reliability and adequacy on a regional scale by electric 
utilities working in the cooperative setting provided by the Regional 
Councils, was developed by the industry and the Federal Power 
Commission in the aftermath of the November 9, 1965, Northeast 
Blackout. That event made clear the need for neighboring interconnected 
electric utilities to coordinate their planning and operation in the 
interests of electric power supply reliability. Accordingly, the 
electric power industry, with the assistance and encouragement of the 
Federal Power Commission, organized Regional Electric Reliability 
Councils to improve inter-utility coordination of system planning and 
operation. These Councils provide an institutional mechanism for the 
activities needed to assure region-wide planning and operation of power 
system facilities, establishment of appropriate standards for the 
improvement of interconnected system operation and response to 
contingencies, and other relevant matters.
    Form OE-411 provides a mechanism for recording in a single compact 
volume the basic data and practices resulting from regionally 
coordinated efforts by electric utilities to assure adequate, 
continuous and reliable electric power supply. The Form annually 
provides, in convenient, form basic information needed by the Federal 
government, State agencies, electric utilities and the public to assess 
the reliability and adequacy of electric bulk power supply as projected 
for a decade ahead.

II. Current Actions

    Since the predecessor of Form OE-411 was initiated in 1970, 
significant changes have occurred in the technology of electric power 
generation, transmission, distribution and use which have been 
accompanied by reduced growth of electric demand. Coupled with changes 
in the national economy, the structure of the electric power industry, 
new Federal energy legislation and changes in Federal and State 
regulatory practices, it is appropriate to reconsider Form OE-411 at 
this time with respect to: Frequency of reporting, scope and content, 
duplicate reporting of data, and administrative arrangements.

Administrative Arrangements

    The Survey Management Division, Office of Coal, Nuclear, Electric 
and Alternate Fuels of the EIA is assuming responsibility for 
administration of the Form. EIA will be responsible for preparing the 
blank Form, sending it to the Reliability Councils (in hard copy, 
diskette or by other means), receiving the completed Form from each 
Council, entering the data into an electronic database readily 
accessible to government agencies and the public, and providing a hard 
copy of each Council's Form to the DOE Freedom of Information Reading 
Room for inspection and copying by the public.
    EIA also will be responsible for making changes to the Form, if 
revisions are found to be needed, after consultation with DOE's Office 
of Emergency Planning and Office of Emergency Management, the North 
American Electric Reliability Council (acting for the Regional 
Councils) and other interested parties. If this change in 
administrative responsibility is implemented, the designation of the 
Form will become EIA-411. Response to Form OE-411 and its predecessors 
was voluntary. It is now proposed that response to Form EIA-411 will be 
mandatory.

Frequency of Reporting

    The Department of Energy is considering reducing the filing 
frequency for the new Form (EIA-411) to biennially instead of annually. 
Accordingly, the 1995 filing would be required, but the next filing 
would not be due until 1997. When the Form's predecessor was initiated 
in 1970 the demand for electric power was exhibiting a high rate of 
annual increase and the planning and construction of electric system 
facilities was correspondingly rapid. Annual reporting was appropriate 
at that time so that assessment of reliability could be based on the 
latest data, which changed rapidly. The present annual growth rate of 
electricity demand is approximately half of what it was in the late 
1960's and early 1970's. It appears probable that the growth rate will 
not increase greatly in the foreseeable future. The pace of facilities 
construction has slowed correspondingly and it seems appropriate to 
reduce the frequency of data reporting.
    Biennial preparation of Form EIA-411 will reduce the reporting 
burden on the utility industry (which provides the data to the 
Councils) and on the Councils (which aggregate the data, prepare the 
response and make distribution to the Department of Energy, the Federal 
Energy Regulatory Commission and State Public Service Commissions). 
Since year-to-year changes are smaller than previously, the validity of 
adequacy assessments based on the biennial reports is not likely to be 
affected significantly.

Elimination of Duplication

    Some data on utility-owned generating units are currently reported 
by utilities twice: To EIA on Form EIA-860 (Annual Electric Generator 
Report) and also on Form OE-411. Currently, data on the mode of 
transportation of fuel to these units are reported on Form OE-411 but 
not on Form EIA-860; however, EIA intends to modify Form EIA-860 to 
include reporting of the fuel transportation data. Also, electric 
utility, unauthorized planned new generators are reported on Form OE-
411 but not on Form EIA-860. EIA will modify Form EIA-860 to include 
electric utility, unauthorized planned new generators. Once this is 
done, Form EIA-860 will include all of the utility-owned generating 
unit data required, and the duplicative work of the Councils in 
preparing a separate list of utility-owned generating unit data 
(including mode of fuel transportation) for Form EIA-411 will become 
unnecessary.
    However, complete and accurate generating unit data will be needed 
in Form EIA-411 to make it a ``stand-alone'' document. Therefore, EIA 
will furnish to each Council the data (reported on Form EIA-860) 
concerning the utility-owned units in that Council, to be incorporated 
by the Council in its response to Form EIA-411. The procedure to do 
this will be developed jointly by EIA and the Councils to assure that 
the data reported in Form EIA-411 are complete, accurate and correctly 
reflect the generating capacity owned by utilities and non-utility 
generators (NUGs) within the Council boundaries. Data concerning non-
utility generating capacity will be obtained by utilities as is done 
currently, will be reported by the utilities to the Councils and will 
be reported by each Council in its response to Form EIA-411.

Content of Proposed Form EIA-411

    The following discussion lists items being considered for inclusion 
in proposed Form EIA-411. A brief justification for each proposed 
change from Form OE-411 is also provided.

Item No.

    1. Projected energy and peak demand for ten years and actual data 
for the previous year.
    No change is proposed for this item.
    2A. Existing generating capacity.
    No change is proposed for the content of this item. The method by 
which the data are to be obtained is discussed above under the heading 
``Elimination of Duplication.''
    2B. Projected Generating Capacity Installations, Changes and 
Removals.
    No change is proposed for this item. The method by which the data 
are to be obtained is discussed above under the heading ``Elimination 
of Duplication.''
    2C. Projected capacity purchases and sales.
    It is proposed to add to this item, for the peak hour of each month 
of the preceding year, the actual purchases and sales of capacity 
resulting from transactions with sources external to the Council area.
    Justification: For some Councils, purchased capacity is a 
significant portion of the total available and significantly affects 
the adequacy of regional power supply. No means now exist for tracking 
this information in Form OE-411.
    3A. Projected capacity and demand for ten years.
    No change is proposed for this item.
    3B. Five-year assessment of adequacy by the Council.
    No change is proposed for this item.
    3C. Regional generating capacity unavailability.
    Only data on utility-owned generating capacity are currently 
reported. It is proposed that unavailability data for non-utility (NUG) 
generator capacity be added to this item to the extent that it is made 
available by NUG entities.
    Justification: As NUG capacity becomes a larger portion of total 
installed capacity in a Council area, it becomes more important to be 
able to assess its reliability.
New Item 3D. Regional Demand Projections.
    Discuss the forecasting method and basic assumptions employed by 
the Council in reaching aggregate demand and energy projections, 
tabulated in Item 3A, for normal weather. Also discuss how the Council 
plans to meet contingencies caused by extreme weather.
    Justification: The discussion will provide a basis, not currently 
available, for understanding the forecasts.
    4A. Bulk Power Transmission System Maps.
    No change is proposed for this item.
    4B. Projected Bulk Power Transmission Line Additions.
    No change is projected for this item.
    5A. Near-term Transmission Adequacy.
    No change is projected for this item.
    5B. Future Critical Bulk Power Transmission Facilities That Will 
Not Be In Service When Required.
    It is proposed to replace this item by a new item 5B requesting:
    (1) Summary data on actual inter-Council purchase and sale 
transactions which took place during the seasonal (summer and winter) 
peak load periods of the preceding year and (2) a discussion of the 
extent to which the magnitude of these transactions approached the 
transfer capacity of the inter-Council transmission facilities under 
conditions then existing.
    Justification: Industry reports claim that some U.S. transmission 
facilities are approaching their capacity transfer limits but do not 
support these claims with quantitative information. The data requested 
will provide an understanding of the ability of transmission facilities 
to transfer the capacity purchases and sales reported in item 3A among 
Councils.
    5C. System Evaluation Criteria.
    It is proposed to enlarge this item to include discussion of the 
effects of non-utility generating sources and increased access by 
independent power producers to transmission facilities as they 
specifically relate to reliability of supply in the Council's area.
    Justification: Increasing non-utility generation and the issues 
associated with integrating that generation into the utility network 
may have effects on system reliability that are not thoroughly explored 
elsewhere.
    6A. Coordination of Operations.
    No change is proposed for this item.
    6B. Load preservation program.
    It is proposed to add to this item requests for: (1) description of 
the voltage reduction procedures employed by the utilities in the 
Council area, their effectiveness in reducing peak demands and the 
effects on customer equipment; and (2) discussion of conditions and 
practices related to reduction of peak demand under control of or at 
the request of the system operator. These practices are usually 
described by such terms as ``direct load control,'' ``interruptible 
load,'' or ``load management.'' The terminology used should be defined.
    Justification: Load preservation practices and procedures differ 
among Councils. Further information is necessary to understand their 
potential for preserving load.
    7. Additional Information.
    No change is proposed for this item.

III. Request for Comments

    Prospective respondents and other interested parties are requested 
to comment on the proposed revisions discussed above and to propose 
such other modifications as they deem useful. The following general 
questions are provided to assist in the preparation of responses:
    For the potential respondent and user:

    A. Are current instructions and definitions in Form OE-411 clear 
and sufficient? If not, what changes do you suggest?
    B. Can the information requested be submitted consistent with 
the existing definitions? (Note: It is intended to adopt, if 
possible, the definitions in the ``Glossary of Terms For NERC 
Publications'' to be published by the North American Electric 
Reliability Council on June 9, 1994.)
    C. Can the information requested be submitted within the 
response time specified in the instructions?
    D. For Form OE-411 as currently constituted, public reporting 
burden is estimated to average 13 hours per response for the 
utilities that provide the basic information and 1000 hours for each 
Reliability Council respondent. How much time, including time for 
reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering 
and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the 
collection of information, do you estimate would be required to 
complete Form EIA-411 if it should be promulgated as proposed in 
this Notice?
    E. What specific changes do you suggest?
    F. If you know of any Federal, State or local governmental 
agency that collects identical data in the same single volume 
format, specify the agency and a reference citation.
    G. For what purposes would you use the EIA-411 report? Please be 
specific.
    H. What are the deficiencies and strengths of any alternate 
source of numerical and descriptive information that you use?

    EIA also is interested in receiving comments regarding the need for 
the information provided in Form OE-411 (existing) or Form EIA-411 
(proposed).
    Comments will become a matter of public record.
    The Office Of Emergency Planning and EIA will review and evaluate 
all comments received as a result of this Notice in the context of best 
serving the interests of the public, the electric utility industry, 
State governments and the Federal government. A statement will be 
prepared integrating the views expressed above with the comments 
received in response to this notice. If appropriate after review by 
these offices, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) will be 
requested to authorize use of Form EIA-411 for the period 1995-1997.

    Statutory Authorities: Sec. 2(a) of the Paperwork Reduction Act 
of 1980, (Public Law No. 96-511), which amended Chapter 35 of Title 
44 United States Code. [See 44 U.S.C. 3506(a) and (c)(1)].

    Issued in Washington, DC June 9, 1994.
Yvonne M. Bishop,
Director, Office of Statistical Standards, Energy Information 
Administration.
[FR Doc. 94-14554 Filed 6-14-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P