[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 13 (Friday, January 19, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3645-3646]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-01037]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 1869-066]


NorthWestern Energy; Notice of Application Tendered for Filing 
With the Commission and Establishing Procedural Schedule for Licensing 
and Deadline for Submission of Final Amendments

    Take notice that the following hydroelectric application has been 
filed with the Commission and is available for public inspection.
    a. Type of Application: New Major License.
    b. Project No.: 1869-066.
    c. Date Filed: December 29, 2023.
    d. Applicant: NorthWestern Energy.
    e. Name of Project: Thompsons Falls Hydroelectric Project.
    f. Location: On the Clark Fork River in Sanders County in the city 
of Thompson Falls, Montana. The project includes 103.80 acres of 
federal lands administered by the U.S. Forest Service.
    g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power Act, 16 U.S.C. 791(a)-825(r).
    h. Applicant Contact: Mary Gail Sullivan, Director, Environmental & 
Lands Permitting & Compliance, NorthWestern Energy 11 East Park Street, 
Butte, Montana 59701; phone: (406) 497-3382 or (406) 490-1838.
    i. FERC Contact: Michael Tust at (202) 502-6522 or email at 
[email protected].
    j. This application is not ready for environmental analysis at this 
time.
    k. Project Description: The project consists of multiple dams that 
form the project reservoir and two powerhouses. The following existing 
facilities occur at the project: (1) a 1,016-foot-long, 54-foot-high, 
concrete gravity dam (i.e., main channel dam) with a 913-foot-long 
overflow section with 8-foot-high fixed wheel panels atop 8-foot-high 
stoplogs and four radial gates; (2) an upstream fish passage facility 
on the main channel dam; (3) a 449-foot-long, 45-foot-high concrete 
gravity dam (i.e., dry channel dam) located downstream of the main 
channel dam with a 289-foot-long overflow section with 8-foot-high 
fixed wheel panels atop 4-foot-high stoplogs; (4) a 1,226-acre 
reservoir impounded by the two dams; (5) a 300-foot-long, 78-foot-wide 
excavated channel leading to a 200-foot long, 78-foot-wide reinforced 
concrete intake structure; (6) three 39-foot-high, 18-foot-wide, and 
75-foot-long rectangular conduits extending from the intake to a 200-
foot-long, 78-foot-wide concrete powerhouse containing a Kaplan-type 
turbine-generator unit with an installed capacity of 52.61 megawatts 
(MW); (7) a 450-foot-long, 80-foot-wide forebay channel leading to a 
258-foot-long, 40-foot-high second intake structure (adjacent to the 
other intake structure); (8) six steel, 14-foot-diameter main turbine 
penstocks and two 6-foot-8-inch-diameter exciter turbine penstocks 
extend from the second intake to a 292-foot-long, 97-foot-wide second 
powerhouse containing six Francis-type turbine-generating units, with 
three rated at 7.0 MW, two rated at 6.38 MW, and one rated at 6.0 MW; 
(9) a 1,000-foot-long, 100-foot-wide tailrace channel leading from the 
outlet of the first powerhouse; (10) a 800-foot-long, 130-foot-wide 
tailrace channel leading from the outlet of the second powerhouse; (11) 
three generator step-up transformers; (12) a 300-foot-long, 115-
kilovolt generator lead line extending from the first powerhouse to the 
second powerhouse and two 50-foot-long, 6.6-kilovolt generator lead 
lines connecting to a breaker within the second powerhouse serving as 
the interconnection point for both powerhouses; (13) a 1,000-foot long 
access road; and (14) appurtenant facilities. NorthWestern Energy 
maintains the following recreation facilities under the current 
license: Island Park, Wild Goose Landing Park, and the South Shore 
Dispersed Recreation Area.
    NorthWestern Energy is currently authorized to operate as a peaking 
facility while maintaining the reservoir elevation within a four-foot 
operating band (i.e., between 2396.5 feet and 2392.5 feet elevation). 
However, NorthWestern Energy typically maintains the reservoir within 
1.5 feet from the full operating level (i.e., between 2396.5 feet and 
2395.0 feet) while also maintaining a minimum discharge flow of 6,000 
cubic feet per second or inflow, if less, in the Clark Fork River 
downstream of the project. NorthWestern proposes to maintain the 
reservoir within 2.5 feet from the full operating level (i.e., between 
2396.5 feet and 2394.0 feet) while continuing to maintain the 6,000-cfs 
minimum flow discharge downstream of the project and would continue to 
operate its upstream fish passage facility from mid-March to mid-
October each year. The project has an average annual generation of 
504,300 megawatt-hours.
    NorthWestern Energy also proposes to revise the project boundary to 
more accurately follow the reservoir shoreline at the project's highest 
operating elevation and to enclose only those lands necessary for 
operation and maintenance. The boundary changes

[[Page 3646]]

would reduce the project acreage from 2,001 to 1,536 acres and it would 
reduce the acreage of federal lands within the project boundary from 
103.80 acres to 66.90 acres.
    l. Location of the Application: In addition to publishing the full 
text of this notice in the Federal Register, the Commission provides 
all interested persons an opportunity to view and/or print the contents 
of this notice, as well as other documents in the proceeding (e.g., 
license application) via the internet through the Commission's Home 
Page (http://www.ferc.gov) using the ``eLibrary'' link. Enter the 
docket number excluding the last three digits in the docket number 
field to access the document (P-1869). For assistance, contact FERC at 
[email protected] or call toll-free, (866) 208-3676 or (202) 
502-8659 (TTY).
    m. You may also register online at https://ferconline.ferc.gov/FERCOnline.aspx to be notified via email of new filings and issuances 
related to this or other pending projects. For assistance, contact FERC 
Online Support.
    n. Procedural Schedule: The application will be processed according 
to the following preliminary Hydro Licensing Schedule. Revisions to the 
schedule may be made as appropriate.

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                Milestone                           Target date
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Issue Deficiency Letter (if necessary)..  January 2024.
Issue Additional Information Request (if  February 2023.
 necessary).
Notice of Acceptance/Notice of Ready for  June 2024.
 Environmental Analysis.
Filing of recommendations, preliminary    August 2024.
 terms and conditions, and fishway
 prescriptions.
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    o. Final amendments to the application must be filed with the 
Commission no later than 30 days from the issuance date of the notice 
of ready for environmental analysis.

    Dated: January 12, 2024.
Debbie-Anne A. Reese,
Acting Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2024-01037 Filed 1-18-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P