[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 6 (Tuesday, January 9, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 655-657]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-291]



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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Western Area Power Administration


Pacific Northwest-Pacific Southwest Intertie Project

AGENCY: Western Area Power Administration, DOE.

ACTION: Notice and Request for Applications of Additional Capacity.

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SUMMARY: The Western Area Power Administration (Western) is requesting 
applications on the Pacific Northwest-Pacific Southwest Intertie 
Project, responding to comments received on the Federal Register notice 
(FRN) dated September 19, 1995, and issuing its final marketing plan 
for firm transmission service available as a result of the completion 
of construction of the Mead-Phoenix (MPP) and Mead-Adelanto (MAP) 500-
kV transmission projects.

DATES: Applications from all interested parties will be accepted until 
February 8, 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Mr. J. Tyler Carlson, Regional Manager, Desert Southwest Customer 
Service Region, Western Area Power Administration, P.O. Box 6457, 
Phoenix, AZ 85005-6457, Telephone: (602) 352-2521, Facsimile: (602) 
352-2630
Mr. Anthony Montoya, Acting, Power Marketing Manager, Desert Southwest 
Customer Service Region, Western Area Power Administration, P.O. Box 
6457, Phoenix, AZ 85005-6457, Telephone: (602) 352-2789, Facsimile: 
(602) 352-2630

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In the FRN dated September 19, 1995 (60 FR 
48513), Western announced its intention to market the additional 
capacity available as a result of the completion of the construction on 
the MPP and MAP which are a part of the Pacific Northwest-Pacific 
Southwest Intertie Project (AC Intertie). Comments were requested and 
received from customers and interested parties by the deadline of 
October 19, 1995. As a result of comments received, Western is issuing 
its marketing plan for MPP and MAP.

Customer Comments

    Comment: The MPP has been identified by Western in the past as the 
Westwing-Marketplace Transmission Project. Many customers anticipated, 
and responded particularly to earlier interest requests by Western, 
based on the premise of interconnection and access to the Westwing bus. 
Western's marketing plan should include access between Westwing and 
Perkins to ensure that allocations of project capability are usable and 
to ensure the highest practical subscription level.
    Response: Western has access to the Westwing 500-kV bus in an 
amount up to its equivalent ownership share in MPP. Western believes 
that the Perkins and Westwing 500-kV buses are equivalent and that 
access to Westwing 500-kV bus is ensured for allocations of project 
capability. 

[[Page 656]]

    Comment: The requirements of existing Parker-Davis Project 
transmission customers to serve load growth along the Colorado River 
should be given first priority on available AC Intertie transmission 
capacity. One way to do this might be to operationally transfer to the 
AC Intertie system existing Parker-Davis Project contracts of customers 
using Parker-Davis Project capability as a path between Arizona and 
either Nevada or California, rather than serving loads along the river 
within Arizona. Capacity made available on the Parker-Davis Project 
transmission system could then be utilized to serve existing and 
growing loads along the Colorado River.
    Response: The only priority being assigned to this marketing plan 
was discussed in the September 19 FRN and again in this FRN. It is not 
Western's intention to establish any new priorities in marketing this 
additional capacity. Western would be willing to accommodate a customer 
with both Parker-Davis Project and AC Intertie allocations, who wished 
to make a contractual change which would give it the ability to 
schedule its capacity in a manner such as discussed in this comment.
    Comment: The available capacity defined in the Marketable Resource 
section of the September 19 FRN should correspond with the Marketable 
Capacity used in the proposed rate. If Western is planning to utilize 
capacity in MPP or MAP for its own purposes, Western should publish its 
capacity requirements and the effect of such reservation of capacity on 
the MPP and MAP rates.
    Response: The Marketable Resource identified in the September 19 
FRN is the incremental AC Intertie capacity that Western will have the 
right to market as a result of the completion of the construction of 
the MPP and MAP. Although Western has rights to market this capacity, 
Western does not believe that all of the capacity on all of the 
segments will initially be fully subscribed, therefore, Western has 
estimated, for rate making purposes, that 668 MW will be the initial 
marketable capacity for the AC Intertie System. This estimated 
marketable capacity will be used as a starting point for determining a 
transmission rate and does not represent a limit for marketing capacity 
on the AC Intertie system. At this time Western has no plans to reserve 
capacity in the AC Intertie for its own purposes.
    Comment: One customer indicated it may be interested in obtaining 
short-term and/or long term firm transmission service from Perkins 
Substation to Marketplace Substation to transmit a portion of its San 
Juan Unit entitlement. Since terms and conditions for such service are 
not specified in the September 19 FRN, this customer was unable to 
evaluate the characteristics of the service provided by Western.
    Response: A prototype transmission service contract has been 
drafted which will include terms, conditions and standard contract 
language to be provided by Western. The prototype contract may be 
requested by calling, writing or faxing your request to the name, 
address or number provided in the ``For Further Information Contact'' 
section above.
    Comment: The comment was made that as the electric utility industry 
is undergoing dramatic structural changes at this time, it is the 
customers' view that Western may market its assets in a manner that 
provides the customers with as much flexibility as possible. This means 
that Western may market a portion of its MPP and MAP entitlement as 
long term and a portion of it as short term. In this manner Western may 
benefit from opportunities in the future to better utilize its 
transmission assets. For example, Western may utilize its transmission 
assets to make sales in southern California or the southwest United 
States.
    Response: It is Western's intention to make the most effective long 
term use of capacity and resulting project repayment. This marketing 
plan is designed to meet this goal.
    Comment: A comment was made that customers taking transmission 
service should be allowed to assign and/or wheel for third parties when 
the customers are not utilizing the service themselves. The belief is 
that this would enhance the marketability of Western's transmission 
assets.
    Response: The ability to assign or transfer may be used under 
certain terms and conditions which will be agreed to during contract 
negotiations.

Marketing Issues

    The additional capacity on the AC Intertie is anticipated to be 
available after January 1, 1996. Western's contracted firm transmission 
service will begin on the inservice date of the MPP and MAP, as 
determined by Western.

Marketing Criteria

    a. Authority: Congress has granted the Secretary of Energy acting 
by and through Western's Administrator, the authority to market certain 
Federal resources.
    b. Marketable Resource:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
        Point of receipt            Point of delivery        Capacity   
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Perkins Switchyard.............  Mead Substation.......  412 MW         
Mead Substation................  Perkins Switchyard....  412 MW         
Mead Substation................  Marketplace Switching   580 MW         
                                  Station.                              
Marketplace Switching..........  Mead Substation         580 MW         
                                  Station.                              
Marketplace Switching..........  Adelanto Switching      100 MW         
                                  Station Station.                      
Adelanto Switching.............  Marketplace Switching   100 MW         
                                  Station.                              
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    c. Marketing Area: Western will market this additional capacity to 
a requestor regardless of their principal place of business.
    d. Priority of Allocation: Western will market the capacity from 
MPP and MAP by line segments in each direction. The following method 
will be used in the evaluation process as follows:

1. Perkins to Mead, Mead to Marketplace or Marketplace to Adelanto
    (a) Both directions, same amount
    (b) Both directions, different amounts
    (c) One direction only
2. Perkins to Marketplace or Mead to Adelanto
    (a) Both directions, same amount
    (b) Both directions, different amounts
    (c) One direction only
3. Perkins to Adelanto
    (a) Both directions, same amount
    (b) Both directions, different amounts
    (c) One direction only

    e. Resource Allocation: The priority of each request will be 
evaluated in the following descending order, with requests for service 
under section (a) on each line segment having the highest priority. A 
request for firm bidirectional capacity on each segment would receive 
the highest priority. If any one path is oversubscribed, then all the 
requested allocations on such path will be prorated to try to 
accommodate each requestor. 

[[Page 657]]

    After this initial marketing process is completed, and if there is 
still some remaining capacity available, Western will market such 
capacity under other transmission service categories, such as, nonfirm, 
or short-term.
    f. Term of Contracts: Firm Transmission Service contracts will 
become effective on January 1, 1996, subject to the inservice date 
determined by Western, and will have a minimum term of 10 years, 
provided, that no contract will exceed a term of 40 years from the date 
of execution.
    g. Contract Provisions: All contracts offered as a result of this 
marketing plan will incorporate Western's standard terms, conditions 
and provisions for transmission service contracts, including the latest 
version of the General Power Contract Provisions as may be updated for 
transmission service. A notice in the Federal Register will announce 
Western's final allocations under this marketing plan.
    h. Application Information: Each application for firm transmission 
service must include:
    1. Customer/Entity Name, address, and point of contact.
    2. Selected Point of Receipt(s) and Point(s)of Delivery.
    3. Amount of long term firm transmission service requested in 
megawatts (MW) for each Point.
    4. Contract term requested.
    Incomplete or late applications will be considered only after all 
other applications received which meet the requirements of this FRN 
have been evaluated.
    i. Evaluation Process: The applications will be evaluated on the 
following criteria:
    1. The most effective use of capacity and resulting project 
repayment.
    2. The amount of capacity requested bidirectionally on each 
segment.
    3. The amount of capacity requested bidirectionally in a continuous 
path on more than one segment.
    4. The amount of capacity requested unidirectionally on one or more 
segments.
    5. The length of contractual term requested.

Determination Under Executive Order 12866

    DOE has determined that this is not a significant regulatory action 
because it does not meet the criteria of Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 
51735). Western has an exemption from centralized regulatory review 
under Executive Order 12866; accordingly, no clearance of this notice 
by the Office of Management and Budget is required.

Environmental Evaluation

    Western will comply with the National Environmental Policy Act 
(NEPA) of 1969, 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.; Council On Environmental 
Quality (40 CFR Parts 1500-1508) and DOE NEPA regulations (10 CFR Parts 
1500-1508) and DOE NEPA regulations (10 CFR Part 1021). Western has 
determined that this action is categorically excluded from the 
preparation of an environmental assessment or an environmental impact 
statement.

    Issued in Golden, Colorado, December 14, 1995.
J. M. Shafer,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 96-291 Filed 1-8-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P