[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 146 (Monday, July 30, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36581-36582]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-16250]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

 Energy Information Administration


Agency Information Collection Extension

AGENCY: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), Department of 
Energy (DOE).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: EIA has submitted an information collection request as 
required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. The information 
collection requests a three-year extension with changes to Form EIA-
846, ``Manufacturing Energy Consumption Survey'' (MECS), OMB Control 
Number 1905-0169. Form EIA-846 collects data from the U.S. 
manufacturing sector on energy consumption, expenditures, shipments of 
energy offsite, end use consumption, building characteristics, 
participation in energy management programs, technologies, and fuel 
switching capacity.

DATES: Comments regarding this proposed information collection must be 
received on or before August 29, 2018. If you anticipate that you will 
be submitting comments, but find it difficult to do so within the 
period of time allowed by this notice, please advise the DOE Desk 
Officer at OMB of your intention to make a submission as

[[Page 36582]]

soon as possible. The Desk Officer may be telephoned at (202) 395-4718.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be sent to the DOE Desk Officer: 
Brandon Debruhl, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office 
of Management and Budget, New Executive Office Building, Room 10102, 
735 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20503. Email: 
[email protected]; and to Tom Lorenz, Office of Energy 
Consumption and Efficiency Statistics, Forrestal Building, EI-22, U.S. 
Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20585 
or by fax at (202) 586-9753, or by email at [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or 
copies of the information collection instrument and instructions should 
be directed to Tom Lorenz at the contact information given above or by 
email at [email protected]. Form EIA-846 and its instructions are 
available on the internet at https://www.eia.gov/survey/form/eia_846/proposed/2018/form.pdf.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This information collection request 
contains:
    (1) OMB No. 1905-0169;
    (2) Information Collection Request Title: Manufacturing Energy 
Consumption Survey;
    (3) Type of Request: Three-year extension with changes;
    (4) Purpose: Form EIA-846 is a self-administered sample survey 
designed to collect energy consumption and expenditures data from 
establishments in the manufacturing sector; i.e., North American 
Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes 31-33. The previous MECS 
required respondents to complete multiple collection forms depending on 
an establishment's primary business activity classification under 
NAICS. The increased use of technology by means of an internet data 
collection system has allowed the MECS to eliminate the need to have 
multiple forms;
    (4a) Changes to Information Collection:
     Questions about Tire-Derived Fuel: EIA will collect data 
about tire-derived fuel (TDF) in the Waste Oils and Tars, and Waste 
Byproduct Gases section of the questionnaire starting on page 35 of 
Form EIA-846A. The new questions will be inserted after questions 138-
139, specifically from those industries, Paper (NAICS 322) and 
Nonmetallic Mineral Products (NAICS 327) that use TDF as an energy 
source. EIA currently asks respondents to report TDF on the MECS in a 
section titled, ``Other.'' The change to report TDF as a separate 
category will reduce respondent uncertainty regarding where to report 
this information. The questions on TDF are the same questions that have 
previously been asked about this energy source: Purchases; 
expenditures; transfers-in; amount produced on-site; whether it's a 
product/byproduct of another energy source consumed on-site; and fuel 
consumption. Over the past three MECS cycles, TDF has become a growing 
energy source within the ``Other'' section and accounts for over half 
of the energy consumed that is reported in that section. Previous data 
collection cycles may have undercounted the use of TDF because some 
establishments did not know where to report their TDF volumes. By 
directly asking for these data as a separate data element, EIA will 
improve the coverage and accuracy of the use of this energy source.
     Question 16 about electric generation with less than one-
megawatt nameplate capacity was added. EIA will collect data about 
small-scale (less than one megawatt) distributed electricity generation 
occurring at U.S. manufacturing establishments. EIA will add a Yes/No 
question about distributed generation to the electricity section of the 
MECS to monitor manufacturing establishments that use non-renewable 
distributed generation. Distributed generation is a subset of 
``distributed energy resources'' which are modular, moderately sized 
generation sources that are used to produce electricity, or combined 
heat and power (CHP), near the site of end use. EIA expects that 
generation from non-renewable, small-scale distributed generation 
(e.g., micro turbines, fuel cells, natural gas generator sets, and 
diesel generator sets below one megawatt) will increase in the future. 
This increase in non-renewable, small-scale distributed generation is 
expected to continue because of a variety of factors, including 
increased demand for reliable and resilient power, deployment mandates 
(e.g., renewable portfolio standards), improved technology and 
decreased cost of distributed generation, low natural gas prices, and 
high retail electricity rates.
    (5) Annual Estimated Number of Respondents: 15,000;
    (6) Annual Estimated Number of Total Responses: 3,750;
    (7) Annual Estimated Number of Burden Hours: 34,565;
    (8) Annual Estimated Reporting and Recordkeeping Cost Burden: The 
cost of the burden hours is estimated to be $2,616,225 (34,565 burden 
hours times $75.69 per hour). EIA estimates that there are no 
additional costs to respondents associated with the surveys other than 
the costs associated with the burden hours.

    Statutory Authority: Section 13(b) of the Federal Energy 
Administration Act of 1974, Pub. L. 93-275, codified as 15 U.S.C. 
772(b) and the DOE Organization Act of 1977, Pub. L. 95-91, codified 
at 42 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on July 17, 2018.
Nanda Srinivasan,
Director, Office of Survey Development and Statistical Integration, 
U.S. Energy Information Administration.
[FR Doc. 2018-16250 Filed 7-27-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6450-01-P