[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 116 (Friday, June 16, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Page 39415]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-12944]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 15310-000]


Rye Development, LLC; Notice of Preliminary Permit Application 
Accepted for Filing and Soliciting Comments, Motions To Intervene, and 
Competing Applications

    On May 5, 2023, Rye Development, LLC, on behalf of Neptune Pumped 
Storage 1, LLC (the Applicant), filed an application for a preliminary 
permit, pursuant to section 4(f) of the Federal Power Act (FPA), 
proposing to study the feasibility of the Elephant Rock Pumped Storage 
Project to be located in Curry County, Oregon, near the Sixes River, 
approximately 12.5 miles east-northeast of Port Orford, Oregon. The 
sole purpose of a preliminary permit is to grant the permit holder 
priority to file a license application during the permit term. A 
preliminary permit does not authorize the permit holder to perform any 
land-disturbing activities or otherwise enter upon lands or waters 
owned by others without the owners' express permission.
    The project would require constructing new water storage, water 
conveyance, and generation facilities at off-channel locations where no 
such facilities exist. It would consist of the following: (1) an upper 
reservoir with a surface area of 51.5 acres and a storage volume of 
3,605 acre-feet at a maximum water-surface elevation of 2,070 feet mean 
sea level (MSL); (2) an 820-foot-long, 24-foot diameter vertical shaft 
that connects the upper reservoir to a 4,200-foot-long horizontal power 
tunnel, having a horse-shoe-shaped cross section approximately 450 
square-foot in area, leading to the powerhouse; (3) a 60-ft high, 40-
foot-diameter steel surge tower connected to the power tunnel upstream 
of the powerhouse; (4) a 100-foot-wide, 500-foot-long, 100-foot-high 
reinforced-concrete powerhouse with four 79.5 megawatt (MW) Francis 
pump-turbine units, with a combined installed capacity of 318 MW, that 
discharge into the lower reservoir; (5) a lower reservoir, located 
adjacent to the powerhouse, with a surface area of 51.5 acres and a 
storage volume of 3,605 acre-feet at a maximum water-surface elevation 
of 1,150 feet MSL; (6) and a 15-mile-long, 230 kV overhead transmission 
line extending from the powerhouse to the existing substation on Elk 
River Road, approximately 3 miles northeast of Port Orford. Both the 
upper and lower reservoirs would be created by zoned rockfill 
embankment dikes approximately 70 feet high and 7,200 feet in 
circumference. The project would have an annual generation capacity of 
929,000 megawatt-hours.
    Applicant Contact: Mr. Nate Sandvig, Vice President, Rye 
Development, LLC, 220 NW 8th Ave., Portland, OR 97202; email: 
[email protected]; phone: (503) 309-2496.
    FERC Contact: David Froehlich; email: [email protected]; 
phone (202) 502-6769.
    The Commission's Office of Public Participation (OPP) supports 
meaningful public engagement and participation in Commission 
proceedings. OPP can help members of the public, including landowners, 
environmental justice communities, Tribal members, and others, access 
publicly available information and navigate Commission processes. For 
public inquiries and assistance with filings such as interventions, 
comments, or requests for rehearing, the public is encouraged to 
contact OPP at (202)502-6595 or [email protected]. Comments, motions to 
intervene, competing applications (without notices of intent), or 
notices of intent to file competing applications should be submitted 
within 60 days from the issuance of this notice. Competing applications 
and notices of intent must meet the requirements of 18 CFR 4.36.
    The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing. Please file 
comments, motions to intervene, notices of intent, and competing 
applications using the Commission's eFiling system at http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp. Commenters can submit brief 
comments up to 6,000 characters without prior registration using the 
eComment system at http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/ecomment.asp. You 
must include your name and contact information at the end of your 
comments. For assistance, please get in touch with FERC Online Support 
at [email protected], (866) 208-3676 (toll-free), or (202) 
502-8659 (TTY). Instead of electronic filing, you may submit a paper 
copy. Submissions sent via the U.S. Postal Service must be addressed 
to: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 
888 First Street NE, Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426. Submissions sent 
via any other carrier must be addressed to: Kimberly D. Bose, 
Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 12225 Wilkins Avenue, 
Rockville, Maryland 20852. The first page of any filing should include 
docket number P-15310-000.
    More information about this project, including a copy of the 
application, can be viewed or printed on the ``eLibrary'' link of the 
Commission's website at http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/elibrary.asp. 
Enter the docket number (P-15310) in the docket number field to access 
the document. For assistance, do not hesitate to get in touch with FERC 
Online Support.

    Dated: June 12, 2023.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2023-12944 Filed 6-15-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P