[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 137 (Tuesday, July 18, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Page 40712]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-11332]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

[OE Docket No. PP-310]


Application for Presidential Permit; Northern Electric 
Cooperative

AGENCY: Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability, DOE.

ACTION: Notice of application.

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SUMMARY: Northern Electric Cooperative (Northern) has applied for a 
Presidential permit to construct, operate, maintain, and connect an 
electric transmission line across the U.S. border with Canada.

DATES: Comments, protests, or requests to intervene must be submitted 
on or before August 17, 2006.

ADDRESSES: Comments, protests, or requests to intervene should be 
addressed as follows: Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy 
Reliability (OE-20), U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 Independence 
Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585-0350.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ellen Russell (Program Office), 202-
586-9624 or Michael T. Skinker (Program Attorney), 202-586-2793.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The construction, operation, maintenance, 
and connection of facilities at the international border of the United 
States for the transmission of electric energy between the United 
States and a foreign country is prohibited in the absence of a 
Presidential permit issued pursuant to Executive Order (EO) 10485, as 
amended by EO 12038.
    By letter dated November 6, 2005, Northern, a member owned electric 
cooperative organized under the laws of the State of Montana, filed an 
application with the Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy 
Reliability (OE) of the Department of Energy (DOE) for a Presidential 
permit. Northern proposes to construct a 14.4 kilovolt (14.4-kV) 
distribution circuit, approximately 0.75-mile in length, from a point 
in Valley County, Minnesota, to the United States border with the 
Province of Saskatchewan, Canada. North of the border the underground 
circuit would continue an additional 0.50 mile to a tap into the 
existing system of SaskPower, a Crown Corporation of Canada. The line 
would be used to import electric energy into the U.S. to provide 
electricity to three existing U.S. government-owned water wells and 
water monitoring stations in Montana. Construction of these 
international facilities would negate the Northern's need to rebuild 18 
miles of deteriorating transmission line that currently serves the 
water facilities.
    Since the restructuring of the electric industry began, resulting 
in the introduction of different types of competitive entities into the 
marketplace, DOE has consistently expressed its policy that cross-
border trade in electric energy should be subject to the same 
principles of comparable open access and non-discrimination that apply 
to transmission in interstate commerce. DOE has stated that policy in 
export authorizations granted to entities requesting authority to 
export over international transmission facilities. Specifically, DOE 
expects transmitting utilities owning border facilities to provide 
access across the border in accordance with the principles of 
comparable open access and non-discrimination contained in the FPA and 
articulated in Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Order No. 
888 (Promoting Wholesale Competition Through Open Access Non-
Discriminatory Transmission Services by Public Utilities; FERC Stats. & 
Regs. ] 31,036 (1996)), as amended. DOE has previously noticed its 
intention to condition existing and future Presidential permits, 
appropriate for third party transmission, on compliance with a 
requirement to provide non-discriminatory open access transmission 
service. In this docket DOE specifically requests comment on the 
appropriateness of applying an open access requirement on Northern's 
proposed facilities.
    Procedural Matters: Any person desiring to become a party to this 
proceeding or to be heard by filing comments or protests to this 
application should file a petition to intervene, comment, or protest at 
the address provided above in accordance with Sec. Sec.  385.211 or 
385.214 of the FERC's Rules of Practice and Procedures (18 CFR 385.211, 
385.214). Fifteen copies of each petition and protest 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: Larry Tade, Manager, Northern Electric 
Cooperative, Inc., Opheim, MT, 59250 and Matthew W. Knierim, Knierim, 
Fewer & Christoffersen, P.C., 130 Third Street South, P.O. Box 29, 
Glasgow, MT 59230
    Before a Presidential permit may be issued or amended, the DOE must 
determine that the proposed action will not adversely impact on the 
reliability of the U.S. electric power supply system. DOE also must 
obtain the concurrence of the Secretary of State and the Secretary of 
Defense before taking final action on a Presidential permit 
application. In addition, DOE must consider the environmental impacts 
of the proposed action (i.e., granting the Presidential permit, with 
any conditions and limitations, or denying the permit) pursuant to the 
National Environmental Policy Act.
    Copies of this application will be made available, upon request, 
for public inspection and copying at the address provided above or by 
e-mailing Odessa Hopkins at [email protected].

    Issued in Washington, DC, on July 12, 2006.
Ellen Russell,
Acting Director, Permitting and Siting, Office of Electricity Delivery 
and Energy Reliability.
 [FR Doc. E6-11332 Filed 7-17-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P