[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 99 (Monday, May 23, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29744-29745]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-12605]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 14114-000]


Reliable Storage 2, LLC; Notice of Preliminary Permit Application 
Accepted for Filing and Soliciting Comments, Motions To Intervene, and 
Competing Applications

    On March 18, 2011, Reliable Storage 2, LLC filed an application for 
a preliminary permit, pursuant to section 4(f) of the Federal Power Act 
(FPA), proposing to study the feasibility of the Rockaway Pumped 
Storage Hydroelectric Project that would use water from the Mount Hope 
Mine in Rockaway Township, Morris County, New Jersey. The sole purpose 
of a preliminary permit, if issued, is to grant the permit holder 
priority to file a license application during the permit term. A 
preliminary permit does not authorize the permit holder to perform any 
land-disturbing activities or otherwise enter upon lands or waters 
owned by others without the owners' express permission.
    The proposed pumped storage project would be comprised of four 
stages of developments, each with a powerhouse and an upper and lower 
reservoir. Some of the reservoirs would be included in more than one 
development; with a lower reservoir for one development serving as an 
upper reservoir for another.
    (a) Stage 1 of the project would consist of the following features: 
(1) A new upper reservoir with a surface area of 45 acres on a 60 acre 
upland site west of Mount Hope Lake and a total storage capacity of 
3,500 to 4,000 acre-feet. The upper reservoir would be filled with 
water pumped out of the Mount Hope Mine Complex and have a normal 
maximum water surface elevation of 900 feet mean sea level (msl). The 
Mount Hope inactive mine would provide access to the lower reservoir 
located at 1,000 feet below the ground surface; (2) a reinforced 
concrete intake/outlet structure capable of discharging 1,500 cubic 
feet per second (cfs); (3) a 10-foot-diameter, 1,300-foot-long 
reinforced concrete vertical intake shaft; (4) an 8-foot-diameter 
underground penstock; (5) a powerhouse approximately 1,300 feet below 
ground level containing one reversible pump turbine with a total 
installed generating capacity of 250 megawatts (MW); (6) a transformer 
hall; (7) a lower reservoir; (8) a ventilation shaft and ventilation 
building at the northern end of the lower reservoir; and (9) various 
ancillary access shafts and tunnels. The proposed Stage 1 would 
generate over 500 gigawatt-hours per year.
    (b) Stage 2 of the project would consist of the following features: 
(1) The lower reservoir utilized in Stage 1, located 1,000 feet below 
the ground surface, would serve as the upper reservoir in Stage 2 and 
would have a total storage capacity of 5,000 to 5,800 acre-feet. The 
upper reservoir would be filled with water pumped out of the Mount Hope 
Mine Complex and have a normal maximum water surface elevation at 900 
feet below the ground surface. The Mount Hope inactive mine would 
provide access to the lower reservoir located at 1,700 feet below the 
ground surface; (2) a reinforced concrete intake/outlet structure 
capable of discharging 1,500 cfs; (3) a 10-foot-diameter, 1,000-foot-
long reinforced concrete vertical intake shaft; (4) an 8-foot-diameter 
underground penstock; (5) a powerhouse approximately 2,000 feet below 
ground containing one reversible pump turbine with a total installed 
generating capacity of 250 MW; (6) a transformer hall; (7) a lower 
reservoir; (8) a ventilation shaft and ventilation building at the 
northern end of the lower reservoir; and (9) various ancillary access 
shafts and tunnels. The proposed Stage 2 would generate over 500 
gigawatt-hours per year.
    (c) Stage 3 of the project would consist of the following features: 
(1) The lower reservoir utilized in Stage 2, located 1,700 feet below 
the ground surface, would serve as the upper reservoir in Stage 3 and 
would have a total storage capacity of 4,000 to 5,000 acre-feet. The 
upper reservoir would be filled with water pumped out of the Mount Hope 
Mine Complex and have a normal maximum water surface elevation at 1,600 
feet below the ground surface. The Mount Hope inactive mine would 
provide access to the lower reservoir located at 2,500 feet below the 
ground surface; (2) a reinforced concrete intake/outlet structure 
capable of discharging 1,500 cfs; (3) a 10-foot-diameter, 1,100-foot-
long reinforced concrete vertical intake shaft; (4) an 8-foot-diameter 
underground penstock; (5) a powerhouse approximately 2,800 feet

[[Page 29745]]

below ground containing one reversible pump turbine with a total 
installed generating capacity of 250 MW; (6) a transformer hall; (7) a 
lower reservoir with a storage capacity of 4,200 to 5,000 acre-feet; 
(8) a ventilation shaft and ventilation building at the northern end of 
the lower reservoir; and (9) various ancillary access shafts and 
tunnels. The proposed Stage 3 would generate over 500 gigawatt-hours 
per year.
    (d) Stage 4 would be a separate development with identical features 
as of Stage 3, including the following: (1) The lower reservoir 
utilized in Stage 2, located 1,700 feet below the ground surface, would 
serve as the upper reservoir in Stage 4 and would have a total storage 
capacity of 4,000 to 5,000 acre-feet. The upper reservoir would be 
filled with water pumped out of the Mount Hope Mine Complex and have a 
normal maximum water surface elevation at 1,600 feet below the ground 
surface. The Mount Hope inactive mine would provide access to the lower 
reservoir located at 2,500 feet below the ground surface; (2) a 
reinforced concrete intake/outlet structure capable of discharging 
1,500 cfs; (3) a 10-foot-diameter, 1,100-foot-long reinforced concrete 
vertical intake shaft; (4) an 8-foot-diameter underground penstock; (5) 
a powerhouse approximately 2,800 feet below ground containing a 
reversible pump turbine with a total installed generating capacity of 
250 MW; (6) a transformer hall; (7) a lower reservoir which consist of 
the lower reservoir of Stage 3; (8) a ventilation shaft and ventilation 
building at the northern end of the lower reservoir; and (9) various 
ancillary access shafts and tunnels. The proposed Stage 4 would 
generate over 500 gigawatt-hours per year.
    The total rated capacity of the turbines and generators of the 
project is 1,000 MW. Upon completion, the proposed project would 
generate over 2,000 gigawatt-hours annually. The proposed project would 
also include two parallel 10.60-mile-long, 500-kilovolt transmission 
lines interconnecting with the proposed Jefferson Substation, located 
approximately 5.3 miles north-northwest of Mt. Hope Lake. The 
transmission line right-of-way would parallel an existing transmission 
line owned by Public Services Electric and Gas Company for 4.3 miles 
and would traverse mostly undeveloped forest lands, two lakes and five 
streams. The primary transmission line of the proposed project would be 
located in part on federal land. Specifically, the transmission line 
would traverse a portion of the northern and eastern edge of the U.S. 
Army's Picatinny Arsenal for a total of approximately 2.4 miles.
    Applicant Contact: Ms. Ramya Swaminathan, Reliable Storage, LLC, 
239 Causeway Street, Boston, MA 02114; phone: (978) 252-7631.
    FERC Contact: Monir Chowdhury; phone: (202) 502-6736.
    Deadline for filing comments, motions to intervene, competing 
applications (without notices of intent), or notices of intent to file 
competing applications: 60 days from the issuance of this notice. 
Competing applications and notices of intent must meet the requirements 
of 18 CFR 4.36. Comments, motions to intervene, notices of intent, and 
competing applications may be filed electronically via the Internet. 
See 18 CFR 385.2001(a)(1)(iii) and the instructions on the Commission's 
Web site http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp. Commenters can 
submit brief comments up to 6,000 characters, without prior 
registration, using the eComment system at http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/ecomment.asp. You must include your name and contact information 
at the end of your comments. For assistance, please contact FERC Online 
Support at [email protected] or toll free at 1-866-208-3676, 
or for TTY, (202) 502-8659. Although the Commission strongly encourages 
electronic filing, documents may also be paper-filed. To paper-file, 
mail an original and seven copies to: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, 
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street, NE., 
Washington, DC 20426.
    More information about this project, including a copy of the 
application, can be viewed or printed on the ``eLibrary'' link of the 
Commission's Web site at http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/elibrary.asp. 
Enter the docket number (P-14114-000) in the docket number field to 
access the document. For assistance, contact FERC Online Support.

    Dated: May 17, 2011.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2011-12605 Filed 5-20-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P