[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 169 (Thursday, August 30, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44266-44267]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-18829]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

U.S. Department of Energy


Information Collection Extension

AGENCY: Office of Fossil Energy, Department of Energy (DOE).

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: FE invites public comments on the proposed collection of 
information, Form FE-746R Natural Gas Imports and Exports, as required 
under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. FE requests a three-year 
extension, with changes, of Form FE-746R, OMB Control Number 1901-0294. 
Form FE-746R collects information from prospective and actual importers 
and exporters of natural gas. Data collected on Form FE-746R are 
published by DOE's Office of Fossil Energy (FE) in monthly and 
quarterly publications, and are republished by EIA as part of its 
natural gas supply and demand statistics. Additionally, the data enable 
FE to monitor trade activity and support FE's market and regulatory 
analyses.

DATES: FE must receive all comments on this proposed information 
collection no later than October 29, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Send your comments to Marc Talbert, FE-34, U.S. Department 
of Energy, Office of Oil and Natural Gas, Office of Fossil Energy, P.O. 
Box 44375, Washington, DC 20026-4375. Submission by email to 
[email protected] is recommended.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you need additional information or 
copies of the information collection instrument, contact Marc Talbert 
by telephone at (202) 586-7991, or by email at [email protected]. 
Access to the proposed form and instructions can be found at http://energy.gov/fe/services/natural-gas-regulationlguidelines-filing-monthlyreports.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This information collection request 
contains:
    (1) OMB No. 1901-0294;
    (2) Information Collection Request Title: Natural Gas Import and 
Export Application;
    (3) Type of Request: Renewal with changes;
    (4) Purpose: The Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974 (15 
U.S.C. 761 et seq.) and the DOE Organization Act (42 U.S.C. 7101 et 
seq.) require EIA to carry out a centralized, comprehensive, and 
unified energy information program. This program collects, evaluates, 
assembles, analyzes, and disseminates information on energy resource 
reserves, production, demand, technology, and related economic and 
statistical information. This information is used to assess the 
adequacy of energy resources to meet near and longer term domestic 
demands.
    EIA, as part of its effort to comply with the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35), provides the general public and 
other Federal agencies with opportunities to comment on collections of 
energy information conducted by or in conjunction with EIA. DOE's 
Office of Fossil Energy (FE) is delegated the authority to regulate 
natural gas imports and exports under section 3 of the Natural Gas Act 
of 1938, 15 U.S.C. 717b. In order to carry out its delegated 
responsibility, FE requires those persons seeking to import and/or 
export natural gas to file an application providing basic information 
on the scope and nature of the proposed import/export activity. Once an 
importer and/or exporter receives authorization from FE, they are 
required to submit monthly reports of all import and/or export 
transactions. Form FE-746R collects critical information on U.S. 
natural gas trade including: name of the importer/exporter; country of 
origin/destination; international point of entry/exit; name of 
supplier; volume; price; transporter; geographic market served; and 
duration of supply contract on a monthly basis. The data are aggregated 
and the statistical aggregates are published in Natural Gas Imports and 
Exports, The Natural Gas Monthly, and other reports produced by FE and 
EIA. The data are used to ensure compliance with the terms and 
conditions of the authorizations. In addition, the data are used to 
monitor North American gas trade, which, in turn, enables the Federal 
government to perform market and regulatory analyses; improve the 
capability of industry and the government to respond to any future 
energy-related supply problems; and keep the general public informed of 
international natural gas trade.
    (4a) Proposed Changes to Information Collection: Form FE-746 
collects information for all modes of natural gas transportation that 
are used for importing to and/or exporting from the United States, 
including by pipeline and, in the case of liquefied natural gas (LNG), 
imports and exports by vessel. FE proposes a change to the 
confidentiality policy for select information reported on Form FE-746R. 
Under FE's current practice, FE publishes aggregate price information 
for natural gas imports and exports by pipeline at the point of entry 
or exit, but publishes prices at the cargo level for exports and 
imports of LNG by vessel.

[[Page 44267]]

Existing authorization holders raised concerns to FE that the release 
of their LNG price data at the cargo level may cause competitive harm 
to them. To address this issue, FE proposes to align price data 
reporting for natural gas imports and exports by vessel--including 
LNG--with current data release policies for pipeline import and export 
movements. Specifically, FE proposes to publish only volume-weighted 
average import and export prices for LNG and other modes of natural gas 
transportation by point of entry or exit, as is currently the practice 
for pipeline imports and exports. Thus, instead of a price being 
published for each LNG cargo imported or exported, a monthly volume-
weighted average price will be published for each point of LNG import 
or export.
    FE proposes the following change in the confidentiality policy for 
Form FE-746. The current statement ``Information reported on Form FE-
746R will be considered public information and may be publicly released 
in company identifiable form'' will be replaced with the new data 
confidentiality statement that will read: ``The following information 
that is reported on Form FE-746R will be protected and not disclosed to 
the public to the extent that it satisfies the criteria for exemption 
under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552, as amended, 
and the Department of Energy (DOE) regulations, 10 CFR 1004.11, 
implementing the FOIA.
     The Price at Import or Export Point.
     In the case of natural gas imports and exports for all 
modes of transportation except pipeline, The name of the Specific 
Purchaser/End User.''

Questions pertaining to Specific Purchaser/End User do not appear on 
the version of Form FE-746R required for pipeline imports and exports.

    All other information reported on Form FE-746R will be 
considered public information and may be publicly released in 
company identifiable form.
    Data protection methods will not be applied to the aggregate 
statistical data published from submissions on Form FE-746R. There 
may be some statistics that are based on data from fewer than three 
import or export transactions. In these cases, it may be possible 
for a knowledgeable person to closely estimate the information 
reported by a specific respondent.

    Transaction-level price information for natural gas and LNG imports 
and exports, including prices for individual LNG import and export 
cargos, and the name of the Specific Purchaser/End User, will not be 
publicly released. No information related to natural gas specific 
customers/end users is currently published. Natural gas import and 
export price information, including prices for LNG imports and exports, 
will be aggregated and published by point of entry or exit in FE's and 
EIA's data publications featuring natural gas import/export 
information, including the Office of Fossil Energy's LNG Monthly and 
EIA's Natural Gas Monthly.
    FE also proposes to collect heat content in Btu per cubic foot for 
LNG imports and exports to account for variations in the heat content 
of gas being imported from and exported to various countries, so that 
import and export volume data may be analyzed according to objective 
standardized units of measurement. The heat content information 
reported for LNG imports and exports on Form FE-746R will not be 
protected and may be publicly released in company identifiable form.
    (5) Annual Estimated Number of Respondents: 371;
    (6) Annual Estimated Number of Total Responses: 4,452;
    (7) Annual Estimated Number of Burden Hours: 13,356;
    (8) Annual Estimated Reporting and Recordkeeping Cost Burden: The 
cost of the burden hours is estimated to be $1,010,916 (13,356 burden 
hours times $75.69 per hour). FE estimates that respondents will have 
no additional costs associated with the surveys other than burden 
hours.
    Comments are invited on whether: (a) The proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of agency 
functions, including whether the information shall have practical 
utility; (b) FE's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of 
information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions 
used, is accurate; (c) FE can improve quality, utility, and clarity of 
the information it will collect; and (d) FE can minimize the burden of 
the collection of information on respondents, such as automated 
collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

    Statutory Authority: Section 13(b) of the Federal Energy 
Administration Act of 1974, Pub. L. 93-275, codified at 15 U.S.C. 
772(b) and Section 3 of the Natural Gas Act of 1938, codified at 15 
U.S.C. 717b.

    Signed in Washington, DC, on August 24, 2018.
Shawn Bennett,
Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Oil and Natural Gas.
[FR Doc. 2018-18829 Filed 8-29-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6450-01-P