[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 211 (Wednesday, November 2, 1994)]
[Notices]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-27191]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: November 2, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Office of Fossil Energy
[FE Docket No. EA-102]

 

Application to Export Electricity Enron Power Marketing, Inc.

AGENCY: Office of Fossil Energy, DOE.

ACTION: Notice of application.

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SUMMARY: Enron Power Marketing, Inc., (Enron) has requested 
authorization to export electric energy to Mexico. Enron is a marketer 
of electric energy. It does not own or control any electric generation 
or transmission facilities.

DATES: Comments, protests, or requests to intervene must be submitted 
on or before January 3, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Comments, protests, or requests to intervene should be 
addressed as follows: Office of Coal & Electricity (FE-52), Office of 
Fuels Programs, Fossil Energy, U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 
Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20585.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ellen Russell (Program Office) 202-
586-9624 or Michael T. Skinker (Program Attorney) 202-586-6667.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Exports of electricity from the United 
States to a foreign country are regulated and require authorization 
under section 202(e) of the Federal Power Act.
    On October 4, 1994, Enron filed an application with the Office of 
Fossil Energy (FE) of the Department of Energy (DOE) for authorization 
to export electric energy to Mexico pursuant to section 202(e) of the 
Federal Power Act. Enron owns no generation or transmission facilities 
but has been certified by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 
(FERC) as a power marketer. Enron expects the majority of its 
transactions to be short-term sales of electricity for which contracts 
have yet to be negotiated.
    This is the first application for export that FE has accepted from 
an individual entity that does not own or operate physical facilities. 
The FE decision to accept an application from a power marketer, as 
opposed to the ``traditional'' electric power entities which own and/or 
operate physical facilities, is based on the marketer taking possession 
of the electric energy inside the United States. This situation is 
distinguished from the power broker which simply facilitates a sale of 
electric energy without ever taking ownership of the commodity.
    The electric energy Enron proposes to transmit to Mexico would be 
purchased from electric utilities and Federal power marketing agencies. 
Enron asserts that such energy would be surplus to the requirements of 
the entities from which it would be purchased. Enron would arrange for 
the exported energy to be wheeled from the selling entities, over 
existing domestic transmission facilities, and delivered to the foreign 
purchaser over one or more of the following international transmission 
lines: San Diego Gas and Electric Company's (SDG&E) 230-kilovolt (kV), 
Miguel-Tijuana transmission line (PP-68); the SDG&E 69-kV line at San 
Ysidro (PP-49); the SDG&E 230-kV, Imperial Valley-La Rosita line (PP-
79); El Paso Electric Company's 115-kV lines at Diablo, New Mexico (PP-
92) and Ascarate, Texas (PP-48-A); Central Power and Light Company's 
138-kV and 69-kV transmission lines at Brownsville, Texas (PP-94); and 
the 138-kV transmission lines permitted to Mexico's Comision Federal de 
Electricidad at Eagle Pass (PP-50), Loredo (PP-57), and Falcon Dam (PP-
57) in Texas.
    Enron has suggested that the initial FE authorization be sufficient 
for all short-term exports of 90 days duration or less, at unspecified 
rates of transmission, over any of the international transmission 
facilities identified above.
    For exports over 90 days duration, Enron has suggested that it 
notify FE prior to commencing exports and that it provide the following 
information: (1) The name of the purchaser(s); (2) the term of the 
agreement; (3) the contract transmission route(s) and the name of the 
companies providing transmission wheeling services; (4) the related 
FERC Rate Schedule, if applicable; and (5) the point(s) of exportation. 
Enron further suggests that FE publish a notice of the proposed 
transaction in the Federal Register, stating that the transaction would 
be deemed approved and allowed to commence unless, within 10 days of 
publication of such notice, (1) a protest is filed, or (2) FE notifies 
Enron that the transaction is not approved. Subject to the foregoing, 
Enron could commence exportation at the end of a 10-day comment period. 
In the case of either a protest or notification of disapproval by FE, 
exports could not commence without specific authorization by FE.
    Before FE takes any final action on applications to export, it 
first must determine that the proposed action will not impair the 
sufficiency of electric supply within the United States or will not 
impede or tend to impede the coordination in the public interest of 
facilities in accordance with section 202(e) of the Federal Power Act. 
For applications from ``traditional'' electric power systems, the 
standard procedure is for the applicant to submit various technical 
studies which demonstrate the operation of the regional electric power 
supply system with the applicant exporting specified levels of power 
over identified international transmission lines. The applicant also is 
required to demonstrate that it would have sufficient generating 
capacity to sustain the proposed export under the terms and conditions 
of its export agreement, while still complying with any established 
reserve criteria.
    Since marketers generally could not be seen as having any ``native 
load'' requirements, the latter criterion of maintaining sufficient 
reserve margins appears inappropriate and unnecessary in this instance. 
Conversely, FE feels that the issue of coordinated use of regional 
transmission (i.e., parallel path flow) becomes more critical in the 
case of marketers because of the unspecified nature of the 
transactions, in terms of the magnitude and sources of the export, and 
the export points.
    FE recognizes the right of the marketer to compete in the electric 
power arena, as well as the legitimate reliability/operating concerns 
of the ``traditional'' electric power systems. Therefore, FE is 
proposing an alternative means for determining the reliability impacts 
in the case of exports by marketers. In lieu of the technical studies 
(power flow, transient stability, etc.) usually submitted in support of 
an export application, FE will consider accepting executed transmission 
wheeling/access agreements between the marketer/applicant and the 
owners of the transmission systems reasonably expected to be involved 
in providing transmission service to the export point. FE is 
considering requiring the submission of these transmission access 
agreements prior to any exports (short- or long-term) occurring over 
any particular export point. If an export order is granted, the 
applicant could ``activate'' any or all export points by submitting 
appropriate transmission agreements. After submission of the 
agreement(s), the applicant would be permitted to engage in short-term 
exports immediately, and long-term exports subject to the procedures 
discussed above.
    FE is soliciting comments particularly on the procedures it is 
considering for addressing electric reliability concerns and the 
authorizing of exports of longer than 90 day duration.

Procedural Matters

    Any person desiring to be heard or to protest this application 
should file a petition to intervene or protest at the address provided 
above in accordance with Secs. 385.211 or 385.214 of the Rules of 
Practice and Procedure (18 CFR 385.211, 385.214).
    Any such petitions and protests should be filed with the DOE on or 
before the date listed above. Additional copies of such petitions to 
intervene or protests also should be filed directly with: Steven J. 
Kean, Vice President, Regulatory Affairs, Enron Power Marketing, Inc., 
PO Box 1188, Houston, Texas 77251-1188. (710) 853-1586. FAX (713) 646-
3490 and David B. Ward, Flood & Ward, 1000 Potomac Street, NW, Suite 
402, Washington, DC 20007. (202) 298-6910. FAX (202) 298-6914.
    Pursuant to 18 CFR 385.211, protests and comments will be 
considered by the DOE 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 petition 
to intervene under 18 CFR 385.214. Section 385.214 requires that a 
petition to intervene must state, to the extent known, the position 
taken by the petitioner and the petitioner's interest in sufficient 
factual detail to demonstrate either that the petitioner has a right to 
participate because it is a State Commission; that it has or represents 
an interest which may be directly affected by the outcome of the 
proceeding, including any interest as a consumer, customer, competitor, 
or a security holder of a party to the proceeding; or that the 
petitioner's participation is in the public interest.
    A final decision will be made on this application after a 
determination is made by the DOE that the proposed action will not 
impair the sufficiency of electric supply within the United States or 
will not impede or tend to impede the coordination in the public 
interest of facilities in accordance with section 202(e) of the Federal 
Power Act.
    Before an export authorization may be issued, the environmental 
impacts of the proposed DOE action (i.e., granting the export 
authorization, with any conditions and limitations, or denying it) must 
be evaluated pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969.
    Copies of this application will be made available, upon request, 
for public inspection and copying at the address provided above.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on October 27, 1994.
Anthony J. Como,
Director, Office of Coal & Electricity, Office of Fuels Programs, 
Office of Fossil Energy.
[FR Doc. 94-27191 Filed 11-1-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P