[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 62 (Friday, March 30, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13743-13744]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-06409]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission


Notice of Technical Conference

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                                                       Docket No.
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Local Transmission Planning Within the         AD18-12-000
 California Independent System Operator
 Corporation.
California Public Utilities Commission,        EL17-45-000
 Northern California Power Agency, City and
 County of San Francisco, State Water
 Contractors, Transmission Agency of Northern
 California v. Pacific Gas and Electric
 Company.
Southern California Edison Company...........  ER18-370-000
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    By order issued concurrently with this notice,\1\ the Commission 
directed staff to convene a technical conference regarding: (1) Local 
transmission planning within the California Independent System Operator 
Corporation (CAISO) (new Docket No. AD18-12-000); (2) Docket No. ER18-
370-000 related to Southern California Edison Company's (SoCal Edison) 
filing of revisions to its transmission owner tariff detailing a new 
annual Transmission Maintenance and Compliance Review process; and (3) 
a complaint filed in Docket No. EL17-45-000 \2\ against Pacific Gas and 
Electric Company (PG&E), regarding PG&E's compliance with the 
transmission planning principles of Order No. 890.\3\ The technical 
conference will explore the processes used by participating 
transmission owners (PTOs) in CAISO to determine which transmission-
related maintenance and compliance activities, including, but not 
limited to, transmission-related capital additions, will be subject to 
the CAISO Transmission Planning Process (TPP). The technical conference 
will take place on May 1, 2018 beginning at approximately 9:00 a.m. and 
ending at approximately 4:00 p.m. The conference will be held at the 
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, Washington, 
DC 20426. All interested persons are invited to participate in the 
conference. Commission members may participate in the conference.
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    \1\ Southern California Edison Co., 162 FERC ] 61,264 (2018).
    \2\ The complainants are the California Public Utilities 
Commission (CPUC), Northern California Power Agency, the City and 
County of San Francisco, State Water Contractors, and the 
Transmission Agency of Northern California.
    \3\ Preventing Undue Discrimination and Preference in 
Transmission Service, Order No. 890, FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 31,241, 
order on reh'g, Order No. 890-A, FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 31,261 
(2007), order on reh'g, Order No. 890-B, 123 FERC ] 61,299 (2008), 
order on reh'g, Order No. 890-C, 126 FERC ] 61,228, order on 
clarification, Order No. 890-D, 129 FERC ] 61,126 (2009).
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    In Order No. 890, the Commission required all public utility 
transmission providers, including regional transmission organizations 
(RTOs) and independent system operators (ISOs), to revise their open 
access transmission tariffs (OATTs) to incorporate a transmission 
planning process that satisfied nine transmission planning principles 
in order to limit the opportunities for undue discrimination and 
anticompetitive conduct in the provision of transmission service.\4\ In

[[Page 13744]]

Order No. 890-A, the Commission noted that each RTO and ISO may fulfill 
its obligations under Order No. 890 by delegating certain planning 
activities to, or otherwise relying on, its transmission owning 
members, provided that the rights and responsibilities of all parties 
are clearly stated in the RTO/ISO OATT.\5\ The Commission also 
explained that, in many cases, RTO/ISO transmission planning processes 
may focus principally on regional problems and solutions, while local 
planning issues may be addressed by individual transmission owners. 
Noting that these local planning issues may be critically important to 
transmission customers, the Commission stated that transmission owners 
must, to the extent that they perform transmission planning within an 
RTO or ISO, comply with Order No. 890 as well.\6\
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    \4\ Order No. 890, FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 31,241 at PP 426, 435; 
see Order No. 890-A, FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 31,261 at P 171. These 
transmission planning principles are: (1) Coordination; (2) 
openness; (3) transparency; (4) information exchange; (5) 
comparability; (6) dispute resolution; (7) regional participation; 
(8) economic planning studies; and (9) cost allocation for new 
projects.
    \5\ Order No. 890-A, FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 31,261 at P 175.
    \6\ Order No. 890, FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 31,241 at P 440.
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    In a series of orders issued between 2008 and 2010, the Commission 
accepted CAISO's TPP as consistent with the requirements of Order No. 
890.\7\ As is relevant here, in an order issued on May 21, 2009, the 
Commission found that ``the local planning activities conducted by the 
participating transmission owners [in CAISO] are reasonable and the 
process, as set forth in the [CAISO] tariff and business practice 
manual, is transparent.'' \8\ However, more recently, a number of 
interested parties have raised concerns regarding the lack of 
opportunity for stakeholder review of transmission-related maintenance 
and compliance activities, including, but not limited to, certain 
transmission-related capital additions, which CAISO PTOs do not submit 
to CAISO's TPP.\9\
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    \7\ See Cal. Indep. Sys. Operator Corp., 123 FERC ] 61,283 
(2008), order denying reh'g and on compliance filing, 127 FERC ] 
61,172 (2009), order on compliance filing, 130 FERC ] 61,048 (2010).
    \8\ Cal. Indep. Sys. Operator Corp., 127 FERC ] 61,172 at P 118.
    \9\ See, e.g., Cal. Pub. Utils. Comm'n, et al. v. Pacific Gas & 
Elec. Co., Complaint, Docket No. EL17-45-000 (filed Feb. 2, 2017) 
(asserting that Pacific Gas & Electric Co. is in violation of Order 
No. 890 because it conducts more than 80 percent of its transmission 
planning on an internal basis without stakeholder review); Cal. Pub. 
Utils. Comm'n Dec. 22, 2017 Protest, Docket No. ER18-370-000 
(protesting Southern California Edison Co.'s filing of an amendment 
to its Transmission Owner Tariff to create an annual Transmission 
Maintenance and Compliance Review process on the basis that the 
proposed process does not meet the requirements of Order No. 890).
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    In an order issued concurrently with this notice in Docket No. 
ER18-370-000, the Commission finds that protesters in that proceeding 
raise important questions that relate to the processes by which all 
CAISO PTOs determine which transmission-related maintenance and 
compliance activities, including, but not limited to, transmission-
related capital additions, must be submitted to CAISO's TPP. In that 
order, the Commission directs Commission staff to convene a technical 
conference to explore these issues.
    The specific issues to be discussed include, but are not limited 
to: (1) The types of transmission-related maintenance and compliance 
activities, including, but not limited to, certain transmission-related 
capital additions, that the PTOs submit for review through CAISO's TPP; 
(2) the process by which PTOs determine which transmission-related 
maintenance and compliance activities must be considered through 
CAISO's TPP; and (3) the types of transmission-related maintenance and 
compliance activities and the process that the CAISO PTOs undertake 
independent of CAISO's TPP. As part of this discussion, staff seeks to 
understand the differences in the processes used by each individual PTO 
in CAISO, the concerns of interested parties regarding these processes, 
and any role that CAISO may play in these processes. Staff emphasizes 
that, while Docket Nos. ER18-370-000 and EL17-45-000 specifically 
relate to Southern California Edison Company and PG&E, respectively, 
this technical conference will explore the transmission planning 
processes of all PTOs in CAISO and of CAISO itself.
    A supplemental notice(s) will be issued prior to the technical 
conference with further details regarding the agenda and organization 
of the technical conference.
    All interested persons may attend the conference, and registration 
is not required. However, in-person attendees are encouraged to 
register on-line at https://www.ferc.gov/whats-new/registration/05-01-18-form.asp. This event will NOT be webcast. However, for those who 
cannot attend in person we will provide a listen-only telephone line, 
if requested. Those wishing this service should register at the link 
provided and specify the telephone line option.
    The technical conference will be transcribed, and transcripts will 
be available immediately for a fee from Ace Reporting Company (202) 
347-3700).
    Commission conferences are accessible under section 508 of the 
Rehabilitation Act of 1973. For accessibility accommodations, please 
send an email to [email protected] or call toll free (866) 208-
3372 (voice) or (202) 502-8659 (TTY), or send a fax to (202) 208-2106 
with the required accommodations.
    For further information, please contact individuals identified for 
each topic:
    Technical Information: Laura Switzer, Office of Energy Markets 
Regulation, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, 
Washington, DC 20426, (202) 502-6231, [email protected].
    Legal Information for Docket Nos. AD18-12-000 and EL17-45-000: 
Linda Kizuka, Office of the General Counsel, Federal Energy Regulatory 
Commission, 888 First Street NE, Washington, DC 20426, (202) 502-8773, 
[email protected].
    Legal Information for Docket Nos. AD18-12-000 and ER18-370-000: 
Susanna Ehrlich, Office of the General Counsel, Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, Washington, DC 20426, (202) 
502-6260, [email protected].
    Logistical Information: Sarah McKinley, Office of External Affairs, 
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, Washington, 
DC 20426, (202) 502-8368, [email protected].

    Dated: March 23, 2018.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2018-06409 Filed 3-29-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6717-01-P