[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 194 (Friday, October 7, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61009-61012]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-21883]


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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 submitted an information collection request for extension 
as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. The information 
collection requests a three-year extension with changes to the 
Petroleum Supply Reporting System (PSRS), OMB Control Number; 1905-
0165. The PSRS consists of seven weekly surveys that make up the Weekly 
Petroleum Supply Reporting System (WPSRS), eight monthly surveys that 
make up the Monthly Petroleum Supply Reporting System (MPSRS), and one 
annual survey. EIA uses WPSRS surveys to collect data from a sample of 
operators on input, production, imports, and inventory levels of crude 
oil, hydrocarbon gas liquids, petroleum products, and biofuels. EIA 
uses MPSRS surveys to collect data from all in-scope operators on 
input, production, imports, biofuel feedstocks consumed, refinery 
capacity, biofuel plant production capacity, fuels consumed in plant 
operations, and annual storage capacity of crude oil, hydrocarbon gas 
liquids petroleum products, and biofuels. EIA uses annual Form EIA-820 
to collect data on refinery capacity, refinery fuels and feedstocks 
consumed, and the quantity of crude oil received by method of 
transportation.

DATES: Comments on this information collection must be received no 
later than November 7, 2022. Written comments and recommendations for 
the proposed information collection should be sent within 30 days of 
publication of this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find 
this particular information collection by selecting ``Currently under 
30-day Review--Open for Public Comments'' or by using the search 
function.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you need additional information, 
contact Michael Conner, U.S. Energy Information Administration, 
telephone (202) 586-1795, or by email at [email protected]. 
The forms and instructions are available on EIA's website at 
www.eia.gov/survey/.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This information collection request contains
    (1) OMB No.: 1905-0165;

[[Page 61010]]

    (2) Information Collection Request Title: Petroleum Supply 
Reporting System (PSRS);
    (3) Type of Request: Three-year extension with changes;
    (4) Purpose: The surveys included in the PSRS collect information, 
that is largely unavailable from other sources, on production, input, 
inventory levels, imports, inter-regional movements, and fuels and 
feedstocks consumed for plant operation, for crude oil, hydrocarbon gas 
liquids, petroleum products, and biofuels. PSRS surveys also collect 
storage capacities for crude oil, hydrocarbon gas liquids, petroleum 
products, and biofuels, refinery capacities, biofuel production 
capacities, and biofuel feedstocks consumed.
    EIA requires data from PSRS surveys to meet requirements of energy 
data users for credible, reliable, and timely energy information. EIA 
uses PSRS survey data in statistical reports including, but not limited 
to, the Weekly Petroleum Status Report (WPSR), Petroleum Supply Monthly 
(PSM), and the Monthly Energy Review (MER). EIA uses PSRS survey data 
to support analysis and projection work with results reported in the 
Short Term Energy Outlook (STEO), Annual Energy Outlook (AEO), and 
other reports. EIA makes reports available at https://www.eia.gov/. EIA 
also uses PSRS data to complete monthly and annual reports of U.S. 
petroleum and biofuel supplies to the International Energy Agency to 
support U.S. participation as an IEA member county. In some cases, 
agencies outside of EIA publish data sourced from PSRS surveys in their 
own reports. For example Bioenergy Statistics reported by the U.S. 
Department of Agriculture.
    Data from PSRS surveys provide data to inform policy and business 
decisions, the data promote efficient markets by providing transparency 
to petroleum and biofuel supplies. Use of PSRS data by academic 
researchers, educators, news media, and the general public promotes 
understanding of energy and its interaction with the economy and the 
environment.

(4a) Proposed Changes to Information Collection

All Petroleum Supply Reporting System Surveys

     EIA conducted two web surveys in 2022 to determine how 
much time respondents took to complete EIA reports. Based on the 
observations of this study it was determined that respondents take 
substantially less time than the approved burden times. Given this key 
finding that technology has substantially reduced reporting burden for 
respondents on these four surveys, EIA decided to reduce the burden to 
respond (annual hours) by 10 percent.

Pretesting Interviews

     EIA would like to conduct up to 50 pretesting interviews 
each year for testing purposes. These methodologies will test or 
evaluate new terminology, unclear questions in surveys, unclear 
instructions, or questions that may be added to the Petroleum Supply 
Reporting System surveys. This will help improve ongoing surveys and 
reduce errors due to respondent confusion.

Form EIA-800 Weekly Refinery Report

     Change survey instructions to require reporting production 
of propane and propylene fractionated from still gas whether 
fractionation takes place at the refinery or at a facility downstream 
of the refinery. This change is needed to more completely account for 
the quantity of propane and propylene supplied, particularly as 
petrochemical feedstock. The current practice of reporting still gas 
shipped from refineries as still gas (not reported weekly on Form EIA-
800) when the still gas will ultimately be fractionated into product 
components overstates supply of still gas (implying use as plant fuel) 
and understates supply of propane and propylene.
     Change the ``Who Must Submit'' part of survey instructions 
to include reporting by non-refinery operators of distillation, 
reforming, cracking, coking, hydrotreating, and similar processes. This 
change is needed in order for EIA to capture complete data on 
operations of process units commonly associated with oil refineries but 
operated at non-refinery facilities such as natural gas liquids 
fractionation plants.
     Discontinue collecting propane production, propane stocks, 
and total natural gas liquids (NGL) stocks at NGL fractionators. NGL 
fractionators that hold stocks will report on the new Form EIA-806 
Weekly Natural Gas Liquids Report. Rename Form EIA-800 from Weekly 
Refinery and Fractionator Report to Weekly Refinery Report.

Form EIA-805 Weekly Bulk Terminal Report

     Add a product line for bulk terminal operators to report 
stocks of propane that have been fractionated and are ready for sale 
(product code 626). The added product detail for fractionated propane 
will add transparency to propane supplies by showing separate stock 
levels of propane readily available for consumption and propane held as 
a component of product mixes where the propane requires processing 
through a fractionator or other unit before being consumed as propane. 
At present, EIA stock levels for propane do not differentiate between 
fractionated propane and propane contained as a component of a product 
mix.
     Change the label for product code 246 from Propane to 
Propane, total including fractionated and unfractionated products.

Form EIA-806 Weekly Natural Gas Liquids Report

     EIA is adding Form EIA-806 Weekly Natural Gas Liquids 
Report to the WPSRS. Form EIA-806 will be the weekly counterpart to 
Form EIA-816 Monthly Natural Gas Liquids Report. When implemented, EIA 
will use data from Form EIA-806 to report weekly total production of 
natural gas liquids (NGL), propane production from natural gas 
processing, and propane and NGL stocks held by operators of natural gas 
processing plants and NGL fractionators.
     Current EIA weekly reporting practice is to use Form EIA-
800 to collect production of propane from natural gas processing equal 
to barrels of propane fractionated from mixed NGL by operators of NGL 
fractionators. Operators of NGL fractionators also report ending stocks 
of total NGL and propane on Form EIA-800. EIA intends to replace 
current reporting by NGL fractionators on NGL fractionators on Form 
EIA-800 with reports submitted by operators of natural gas processing 
plants that produce and/or hold stocks, and operators of NGL 
fractionation plants that hold stocks. With Form EIA-806, EIA will 
collect the total quantity of natural gas liquids produced weekly by 
operators of natural gas processing plants. Weekly total NGL production 
is unavailable from current data collected on Form EIA-800. In 
addition, collecting weekly data from operators of natural gas 
processing plants allows EIA to improve consistency of weekly and 
monthly regional propane production by reporting weekly propane 
production in the region of the producing natural gas processing plant 
as is done in monthly data, rather than in the region where a 
fractionator operator separated propane from mixed NGL.
     EIA will collect total NGL stocks held by operators of 
natural gas processing plants and NGL fractionators. EIA will use 
plant-level NGL product composition data reported on Form EIA-816 to 
allocate total production and stocks reported weekly

[[Page 61011]]

on Form EIA-806 to propane and other NGL products. EIA will allocate 
total NGL production and stocks reported weekly on Form EIA-806 to 
propane and other NGL current composition data, since this data is 
likely to be unavailable to plant operators in time to report weekly 
(i.e. weekly reports due to EIA by 5:00 p.m. eastern time on Monday 
with data for the week ended at 7:00 a.m. eastern time the previous 
Friday).

Form EIA-810 Monthly Refinery Report

     Change the ``Who Must Submit'' part of survey instructions 
to include reporting by non-refinery operators of distillation, 
reforming, cracking, coking, hydrotreating, and similar processes. This 
change is needed in order for EIA to capture complete data on 
operations of process units commonly associated with oil refineries but 
operated at non-refinery facilities such as natural gas liquids 
fractionation plants.
     Change the label for product code 207 from the current 
``Other renewable fuels and intermediate products'' to ``Other Biofuels 
and Biointermediates'' not elsewhere specified or indicated. This 
change is to make the Form EIA-810 product label consistent with 
terminology used in EIA, other government agencies, and the biofuel 
industry.
     Change survey instructions to require reporting production 
of natural gas liquids (ethane, propane, normal butane, and isobutane) 
and refinery olefins (ethylene, propylene, normal butylene, 
isobutylene) on a product basis when the products are fractionated from 
still gas whether fractionation takes place at the refinery or at a 
facility downstream of the refinery. This change is needed to more 
completely account for quantities supplied of natural gas liquids and 
refinery olefins on a product basis, particularly for use as 
petrochemical feedstock. The current practice of reporting still gas 
shipped from refineries as still gas when the still gas will ultimately 
be fractionated into product components overstates supply of still gas 
(implying use as plant fuel) and understates supply of natural gas 
liquids and refinery olefin products.

Form EIA-814 Monthly Import Report

    Change the product label of ``Other renewable fuels and 
intermediate products'' to ``Other biofuels and biointermediates'', not 
elsewhere specified or indicated. This change is to make product labels 
on Form EIA-814 consistent with terminology used in EIA, other 
government agencies, and the biofuel industry.

Form EIA-815 Monthly Bulk Terminal Report

     Change the label for product code 207 from the current 
``Other renewable fuels and intermediate products'' to ``Other Biofuels 
and Biointermediates not elsewhere specified or indicated. This change 
is to make the Form EIA-815 product label consistent with terminology 
used in EIA, other government agencies, and the biofuel industry.
     Add a product line for bulk terminal operators to report 
stocks of propane that have been fractionated and are ready for sale 
(product code 626). The added product detail for fractionated propane 
will add transparency to propane supplies by showing separate stock 
levels of propane readily available for consumption and propane held as 
a component of product mixes where the propane requires processing 
through a fractionator or other unit before being consumed as propane. 
At present, EIA stock levels for propane do not differentiate between 
fractionated propane and propane contained as a component of a product 
mix. Change the label for product code 246 from Propane to Propane, 
total including fractionated and unfractionated products.
     Change the product code and label for reporting storage 
capacity in part 4 from product code 246, Propane (dedicated), to 
product code 626, Propane, fractionated and ready for sale. This change 
makes part 4 consistent with stocks reported in part 3 of Form EIA-815.

Form EIA-816 Monthly Natural Gas Liquids Report

     Add a separate product line for operators of natural gas 
processing plants to report condensate and scrubber oil (product code 
210) as a product separate from natural gasoline (product code 220). 
Condensate and scrubber oil are separate products from natural gasoline 
with different uses, but the current Form EIA-816 combines the products 
under the natural gasoline label. Natural gasoline is normally used 
either for blending into gasoline, as petrochemical feedstock, or 
exported. Condensate and scrubber oil are usually either blended into 
crude oil or exported. Reporting condensate and scrubber oil as 
separate products from natural gasoline will provide greater 
transparency to supplies of both NGL and crude oil. This change will 
also make reporting on Form EIA-816 consistent, in terms of the 
products reported, with Form EIA-64A Annual Report of the Origin of 
Natural Gas Liquids.

Form EIA-817 Monthly Tanker and Barge Movements Report

     Change the label for product code 207 from the current 
``Other renewable fuels and intermediate products'' to ``Other Biofuels 
and Biointermediates'' not elsewhere specified or indicated. This 
change is to make the Form EIA-817 product label consistent with 
terminology used in EIA, other government agencies, and the biofuel 
industry.

Form EIA-819 Monthly Report of Biofuels, Fuel Oxygenates, Isooctane, 
and Isooctene

     Change the label for product code 183 in part 8 of Form 
EIA-819 from the current ``Other renewable fuels and intermediate 
products'' to ``Other Biofuels and Biointermediates'' not elsewhere 
specified or indicated. This change is to make the Form EIA-819 product 
label consistent with terminology used in EIA, other government 
agencies, and the biofuel industry.

Form EIA-820 Annual Refinery Report

    Change the ``Who Must Submit'' part of survey instructions to 
include reporting by non-refinery operators of distillation, reforming, 
cracking, coking, hydrotreating, and similar processes. This change is 
needed in order for EIA to capture complete data on operations of 
process units commonly associated with oil refineries but operated at 
non-refinery facilities such as natural gas liquids fractionation 
plants.
    (5) Estimated Number of Respondents: 4,674 total respondents;

EIA-800 consists of 104 respondents
EIA-802 consists of 46 respondents
EIA-803 consists of 86 respondents
EIA-804 consists of 102 respondents
EIA-805 consists of 764 respondents
EIA-806 consists of 200 respondents
EIA- 809 consists of 146 respondents
EIA-810 consists of 133 respondents
EIA-812 consists of 107 respondents
EIA-813 consists of 235 respondents
EIA-814 consists of 288 respondents
EIA-815 consists of 1,484 respondents
EIA-816 consists of 485 respondents
EIA-817 consists of 36 respondents
EIA- 819 consists of 275 respondents
EIA- 820 consists of 133 respondents
Pretest methodology consists of 50 respondents

    (6) Annual Estimated Number of Total Responses: 112,275 total 
responses;
    (7) Annual Estimated Number of Burden Hours: 182,983 total annual 
burden hours;

[[Page 61012]]

    (8) Annual Estimated Reporting and Recordkeeping Cost Burden: 
182,983 annual hours * $83.38/hour = $15,257,122.54. EIA estimates that 
respondents will have no additional costs associated with the surveys 
other than the burden hours and the maintenance of the information 
during the normal course of business.

Statutory Authority

    15 U.S.C. 772(b) and 42 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.

    Signed in Washington, DC, on September 30, 2022.
Samson A. Adeshiyan,
Director, Office of Statistical Methods and Research, U. S. Energy 
Information Administration.
[FR Doc. 2022-21883 Filed 10-6-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P