[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 204 (Friday, October 21, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Page 65506]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-27229]



[[Page 65506]]

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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 13220-001]


Notice of Preliminary Permit Application Accepted for Filing and 
Soliciting Comments, Motions To Intervene, and Competing Applications; 
Pacific Gas and Electric Company

    On September 1, 2011, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) 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 
Kings River Pumped Storage Project (project) to be located on North 
Fork Kings River, Short Hair Creek, and Lost Canyon Creek, about 30 
miles east of Shaver Lake in Fresno County, California. 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 project would consist of one of the following two 
possible designs: \1\ (1) Option 1 consisting of (i) a dam in the Lost 
Canyon area, 200 feet high and 700 feet long; (ii) a reservoir with a 
surface elevation of 7,720 feet above mean sea level (msl) and an 
estimated storage capacity of 15,695 acre-feet; (iii) an 8,000-foot-
long power tunnel including intake structure, penstock, and tailrace; 
(2) option 2 consisting of (i) a dam in the Lower Short Hair Creek area 
with a height of 175 feet high and length of 1,700 feet; (ii) a 
reservoir with full pool elevation of 8,245 feet msl and storage 
capacity of 16,290 acre-feet; (iii) a 14,000-foot-long power tunnel 
including intake structure, penstock, and tailrace; (3) the existing 
Wishon reservoir, with a surface area of 1,025 acres, storage capacity 
of 128,639 acre-feet, and a normal water surface elevation of 6,550 
feet msl, acting as the lower reservoir for either proposed plan; (4) a 
powerhouse with a total installed capacity from 380 to 1,140 megawatts; 
(5) a transmission line between 2,000 and 5,000 feet long and of 230 or 
500 kilovolts; and (6) appurtenant facilities. The proposed project 
would have an annual production between 508 and 2,031 gigawatt hours.
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    \1\ PG&E would also investigate the possible addition of 
equipment and other infrastructure within the existing Helms Project 
(FERC Project No. 2375), which uses the existing Courtland reservoir 
as the upper reservoir and the existing Wishon reservoir as a lower 
reservoir. Any such addition may require an amendment of the 
existing license.
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    Applicant Contact: Mr. Randall Livingston, Vice President--Power 
Generation, Pacific Gas and Electric Company, 245 Market Street, San 
Francisco CA 94105-1702; phone: (415) 973-6950.
    FERC Contact: Joseph Hassell; phone: (202) 502-8079.
    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 
Commission's Web site at http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/elibrary.asp. 
Enter the docket number (P-13220-001) in the docket number field to 
access the document. For assistance, contact FERC Online Support.

    Dated: October 13, 2011.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2011-27229 Filed 10-20-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P