[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 106 (Friday, June 2, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36306-36308]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-11765]
[[Page 36306]]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket No. AD22-9-000]
New England Winter Gas-Electric Forum; Supplemental Notice of
Second New England Winter Gas-Electric Forum
As announced in the Notice of Forum and the Supplemental Notice of
Forum issued in this proceeding on February 16, 2023, and April 13,
2023, respectively, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
(Commission) will convene a Commissioner-led forum on Tuesday, June 20,
2023, from approximately 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time, to
discuss possible solutions to the electricity and natural gas
challenges facing the New England Region. The final agenda for this
forum is attached, which identifies the forum panelists. Attached to
this notice are questions for the panelists; we request panelists file
position statements addressing these questions in this docket no later
than June 9, 2023. Written responses to these questions are voluntary
and will be used to supplement the record for discussion at the forum.
The forum will be open to the public and be held at the DoubleTree
by Hilton Portland, 363 Maine Mall Rd, Portland, ME, 04106.
Registration for in-person attendance is required, and there is no fee
for attendance. A link to attendee registration is available on the New
England Winter Gas-Electric Forum event page on the Commission's
website. Due to space constraints, seating for this event will be
limited and registrants that get a confirmed space will be contacted
via email. Only confirmed registrants will be admitted to the forum
given the maximum occupancy limit at the venue (as required by fire and
building safety code). Therefore, the Commission encourages members of
the public who wish to attend this event in person to register at their
earliest convenience. Online registration will be open until June 19,
the day before the forum, or as long as attendance capacity is
available. Once registration has reached capacity, registration will be
closed. However, those interested in attending after capacity has been
reached can join a waiting list (using the same registration link) and
be notified if space becomes available. Those who are unable to attend
in person may watch the free webcast.
The webcast will allow persons to listen and observe the forum
remotely but not participate. Information on this forum, including a
link to the webcast, will be posted prior to the event on this forum's
event page on the Commission's website. A recording of the webcast will
be made available after the forum in the same location on the Calendar
of Events. The forum will be transcribed. Transcripts of the forum will
be available for a fee from Ace-Federal Reporters, Inc. (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], call toll-free (866) 208-3372
(voice) or (202) 208-8659 (TTY), or send a fax to (202) 208-2106 with
the required accommodations.
For more information about this forum, please contact
[email protected] or [email protected] for technical or
logistical questions.
Dated: May 26, 2023.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
Second New England Winter Gas-Electric Forum
Docket No. AD22-9-000
June 20, 2023
Agenda
9:00 a.m.-9:15 a.m.: Welcome and Opening Remarks from the Chairman and
Commissioners
9:15 a.m.-9:45 a.m.: Opening Presentations: Winters 2023/2024 and 2024/
2025 in New England and the Role of Everett
The forum will commence with a presentation by ISO New England Inc.
(ISO-NE) that discusses the upcoming winters of 2023/2024 and 2024/2025
with consideration for the Everett Marine Terminal's (Everett)
availability and its impact on the ISO-NE electric grid. Following ISO-
NE's presentation on upcoming winters, a second presentation by Richard
Levitan will explain Everett's physical capabilities and its impact on
the electric and natural gas systems in New England.
Panelists
Stephen George, Director, Operational Performance, Training
and Integration, ISO New England
Richard Levitan, President, Levitan & Associates
9:45 a.m.-10:45 a.m.: Panel 1: Should Everett be Retained and, if so,
how?
Panel 1 will allow panelists to provide their views on the need for
Everett on the electric and natural gas systems in New England. This
panel may also discuss fuel procurement needs and challenges, including
the fuel procurement and LNG capabilities available to New England from
facilities other than Everett. Finally, this panel will discuss the
constraints surrounding the planned retirement of Everett and the
future winter expected impacts on the New England electric and natural
gas systems.
Panelists
Carrie H. Allen, Constellation Energy Generation, SVP and DGC,
Regulatory Policy
Vamsi Chadalavada, Executive Vice President and Chief
Operating Officer, ISO New England
Charles Dickerson, President and CEO, Northeast Power
Coordinating Council (NPCC)
Dan Dolan, President, New England Power Generators Association
(NEPGA)
James Holodak, Jr., Vice President, Energy Supply, National
Grid
Richard Levitan, President, Levitan & Associates
Robert Neustaedter, Directory of Regulatory Affairs, Repsol
Ernesto Ochoa, Vice President of Commercial, Kinder Morgan
Panelist Questions
Please comment on whether Everett is needed for the reliable
operation of the electric and/or natural gas systems in New England
during the upcoming winters and beyond. As part of these comments,
please address the following:
a. Is there sufficient information available to make this
assessment? If not, what additional information would be most useful to
determine whether there is a need to retain Everett (e.g., information
about the uses of, beneficiaries of, and costs to maintain the Everett
facility)?
b. Is LNG from other sources (e.g., Repsol and/or Excelerate) a
full substitute for the LNG from Everett? If not, under what
circumstances is it not a full substitute and are there conditions
under which electric system and/or gas system operators would be unable
to meet electric and/or gas demand or maintain reliable service if
Everett retires?
c. To the extent there is a need for Everett's continued operation,
does that need change over a longer time horizon? If so, what
circumstances drive its need?
d. What are potential next steps on these issues in both the short-
term (winters 2023/2024 and 2024/2025) and beyond (beginning winter
2025/2026)?
10:45 a.m.-11:15 a.m.: Third Presentation: Extreme Weather Risks
[[Page 36307]]
to ISO-NE, Presentation of the EPRI Study by ISO-NE and EPRI
The third presentation, by ISO-NE and the Electric Power Research
Institute (EPRI), will detail the development of the EPRI model, the
assumptions used, parameters considered, and the study results for the
target year of 2027.\1\ ISO-NE and EPRI will also explain the study's
key conclusions and offer thoughts on how those conclusions should be
considered in the context of developing solutions to the region's
electricity and natural gas challenges.
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\1\ Each year as part of its Annual Work Plan, ISO-NE develops
``Anchor Projects,'' which for 2023 includes ISO-NE's work with EPRI
to develop an ``innovative framework for conducting a probabilistic
energy-security study that assesses the operational impact of future
extreme weather events.'' See ISO-NE, ISO New England's 2023 Annual
Work Plan, (October 2022) at 7, https://www.iso-ne.com/static-assets/documents/2022/10/2023_awp_final_10_12_22.pdf. The
preliminary study results for Winter 2027 can be found on the ISO-NE
website. See ISO-NE, Operational Impacts of Extreme Weather Events,
Preliminary Results of Energy Adequacy Studies for Winter 2027, (May
16, 2023), https://www.iso-ne.com/static-assets/documents/2023/05/a10_operational_impact_of_extreme_weather_events.pdf.
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Panelists
Vamsi Chadalavada, Executive Vice President and Chief
Operating Officer, ISO New England
Stephen George, Director, Operational Performance, Training
and Integration, ISO New England
11:15 a.m.-12:15 p.m.: Panel 2: Reactions to the EPRI Study
This panel will give panelists an opportunity to provide their
reactions to the EPRI study's assumptions, inputs, and results. This
panel will discuss what actionable steps should be taken, if any, as a
result of the study's findings, and whether additional study or
analysis is needed.
Panelists
Phil Bartlett, Chair, Maine Public Utilities Commission
Vamsi Chadalavada, Executive Vice President and Chief
Operating Officer, ISO New England
James Daly, Vice President Energy Supply, Eversource Energy
Ronald T. Gerwatowski, Chairman, Rhode Island Public Utilities
Commission
Stephen George, Director, Operational Performance, Training
and Integration, ISO New England
Ben Griffiths, Senior Director of New England Regulatory
Policy, LS Power
Mark Lauby, Senior Vice President and Chief Engineer, North
American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC)
Rob Perkins, Vice President of Pipeline Management, Kinder
Morgan
Panelist Questions
Please comment on the assumptions and conclusions of the EPRI study
and what next steps should be taken given the study's results. As part
of these comments, please address the following:
a. Do these findings provide the information needed to make
decisions about winter energy risks in New England? If not, what
additional information is needed?
b. Are additional or continuous studies needed to assess New
England electric and gas winter issues? If so, what analyses are needed
and how often should this be conducted?
12:15 p.m.-1:45 p.m.: Lunch Break
1:45 p.m.-3:00 p.m.: Panel 3: Path to Sustainable Solutions--
Infrastructure
Based on the findings and issues identified in the previous panels
and presentations, Panel 3 will shift toward discussing potential
infrastructure solutions beyond winter 2023/2024. While retention of
Everett has been raised as one possible solution, this panel will
discuss the merits of other, longer-term solutions available to the
region and the timelines for implementing them. Potential topics for
discussion include: (1) new electric transmission interconnections with
other regions; (2) the timing and impact of new offshore wind, onshore
wind, and solar resource development; (3) transmission planning to
enable efficient development of expected offshore wind additions; (4)
increased natural gas pipeline infrastructure/capacity; and (5)
increased oil and natural gas storage capability.
Panelists
David Cavanaugh, Senior Vice President Regulatory & Market
Affairs, Energy New England
Patricia DiOrio, Head of Americas Project Development, Orsted
North America
Vandan Divatia, Vice President, Transmission Policy,
Compliance, and Interconnections, Eversource Energy
Katie Dykes, Commissioner, Connecticut Department of Energy
and Environmental Protection
Bob Ethier, Vice President, System Planning, ISO New England
Richard Paglia, Vice President, Marketing & Business
Development, Enbridge
Rebecca Tepper, Secretary, Massachusetts Executive Office of
Energy and Environmental Affairs
Panelist Questions
Please comment on what infrastructure is necessary to support
reliable electric and gas system operations in New England. As part of
these comments, please address the following:
a. Are those infrastructure projects currently being pursued? If
not, why not?
b. What obstacles need to be addressed to allow new infrastructure
to be placed timely into operation, and how are those obstacles
currently being addressed?
c. What steps, if any, should the Commission, ISO-NE, the New
England states, and/or others take to address obstacles under their
jurisdiction?
3:00 p.m.-3:15 p.m.: Break
3:15 p.m.-4:30 p.m.: Panel 4: Path to Sustainable Solutions--Market
Design
In Panel 4, Commissioners and panelists will discuss potential
market solutions to New England's winter reliability challenges.
Specifically, this panel will discuss any potential merits and benefits
of market design changes to ISO-NE markets to enhance resource
performance incentives, including incentives for resources to make
advanced fuel procurements and/or maintain fuel inventories in the
winter months; and align capacity market structure and rules with
observed reliability risks--e.g., by reforming resource capacity
accreditation and/or conducting prompt and/or seasonal capacity
auctions.
Panelists
Riley Allen, Commissioner, Vermont Public Utility Commission
Michelle Gardner, Executive Director Regulatory Affairs--
Northeast, NextEra Energy Resources
Mark Karl, Vice President, Market Development and Settlements,
ISO New England
Donald Kreis, Consumer Advocate, New Hampshire Office of the
Consumer Advocate
Pallas LeeVanSchaick, Vice President, Potomac Economics
Aleks Mitreski, Senior Director, Regulatory Affairs,
Brookfield Renewables
Christie Prescott, Director, Energy Supply, United
Illuminating
Andrew Weinstein, Vice President, FERC Market Policy, Vistra
Panelist Questions
Please comment on what market reforms are necessary to support
reliable electric and gas system operations in New England. As part of
these comments, please address the following:
[[Page 36308]]
a. What proposals currently under consideration in the stakeholder
process and in the ISO-NE work plan would be most helpful to address
New England's winter electric and gas system challenges?
i. Are these proposals appropriately prioritized? If not, what
should be done and how can necessary market changes be expedited?
ii. At a high level, are there any major concerns with the current
proposals under discussion that should be addressed?
b. Are there additional reforms that are not currently under
consideration in the stakeholder process that are necessary for energy
resources to enhance fuel procurement strategies? If so, what other
reforms should be considered? How should these market changes should be
prioritized?
4:30 p.m.-5:00 p.m.: Closing Roundtable
In the Closing Roundtable, Commissioners and panelists will discuss
what was learned through the presentations and panels and consider next
steps. Topics will include what solutions stakeholders agree on
pursuing and the timeline for implementing them as well as discussion
of if, how, and when longer term solutions can be implemented sooner
than currently expected.
Panelists
Jim Robb, President and CEO, North American Electric
Reliability Corporation (NERC)
Gordon van Welie, President and CEO, ISO New England
State Representatives
Phil Bartlett, Chair, Maine Public Utilities Commission
Katie Dykes, Commissioner, Connecticut Department of Energy
and Environmental Protection
Ronald T. Gerwatowski, Chairman, Rhode Island Public Utilities
Commission
Carleton Simpson, Commissioner, New Hampshire Public Utilities
Commission
Rebecca Tepper, Secretary, Massachusetts Executive Office of
Energy and Environmental Affairs
June Tierney, Commissioner, Vermont Department of Public
Service
[FR Doc. 2023-11765 Filed 6-1-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P