[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 160 (Monday, August 19, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 67075-67077]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-18395]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY


Request for Information Regarding Interregional and Offshore Wind 
Transmission

AGENCY: Grid Deployment Office, U.S. Department of Energy.

ACTION: Request for information (RFI).

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SUMMARY: The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) provides funding to the 
Secretary of Energy (Secretary) to support convening relevant 
stakeholders to address the development of interregional electricity 
transmission and transmission of electricity that is generated by 
offshore wind, and to conduct planning, modeling, and analysis 
regarding interregional electricity transmission and transmission of 
electricity generated by offshore wind. Transmission development is an 
important priority to address reliability issues within the national 
electrical grid and to improve the flow of new energy generation, 
including offshore wind, both between regions and within regions to 
meet national clean energy goals. The U.S.

[[Page 67076]]

Department of Energy (DOE) Grid Deployment Office (GDO) is issuing this 
RFI to seek input from all parties regarding issues related to the 
planning and development of electric transmission facilities to service 
offshore wind power generating stations on the U.S. West Coast.

DATES: Written comments and information are requested on or before 
October 3, 2024.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties may submit comments to 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information 
may be sent to [email protected]. Questions about the RFI may 
be addressed to Katherine Segal, (301) 820-2892; 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    On August 16, 2022, President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction 
Act (IRA).\1\ The IRA makes the single largest investment in climate 
and energy in American history, enabling America to tackle the climate 
crisis and putting the United States on a pathway to achieving the 
Biden-Harris Administration's climate goals, including a net-zero 
economy by 2050. Within section 50153, the IRA provides funding for the 
Department to support convening ``relevant stakeholders to address the 
development of interregional electricity transmission and transmission 
of electricity that is generated by offshore wind,'' and to ``conduct 
planning, modeling, and analysis regarding interregional electricity 
transmission and transmission of electricity generated by offshore 
wind.'' \2\
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    \1\ Inflation Reduction Act, Public Law 117-169 (August 16, 
2022).
    \2\ Inflation Reduction Act, Public Law 117-169 (August 16, 
2022).
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II. Purpose

    The purpose of this RFI is to gather information about siting 
offshore wind electricity transmission infrastructure from recreational 
and commercial ocean users, offshore wind or maritime industries, 
government entities (Tribal, Federal, State, county, or local 
government agencies), and the public. As part of this RFI, DOE is 
primarily interested in feedback on the transmission infrastructure 
associated with offshore wind and not the offshore wind generation 
turbines themselves. Transmission infrastructure includes electrical 
cables, cable corridors, substations, transformers, converters, and 
other associated equipment located both offshore and onshore.
    Information provided as part of this RFI will be used by GDO and 
the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), U.S. Department of the 
Interior, as part of the West Coast Offshore Wind Transmission 
Convening Series. Feedback gathered through this RFI, and the Convening 
Series will support GDO and BOEM in the development of West Coast 
offshore wind transmission recommendations. These recommendations will 
not include any regulatory actions or siting decisions. For examples of 
the types of recommendations that DOE and BOEM might develop for the 
West Coast, please see An Action Plan for Offshore Wind Transmission 
Development in the U.S. Atlantic Region (www.energy.gov/gdo/atlantic-offshore-wind-transmission-action-plan).

III. Request for Information

    Planning and siting transmission infrastructure for offshore wind 
energy involves several authorities (e.g., BOEM, Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission (FERC), independent system operators and regional 
transmission organizations, public utility commissions, State 
departments of energy, State departments of fish and wildlife, etc.) 
tasked with planning, locating, designing, and approving new or 
upgraded electric transmission facilities. Transmission associated with 
offshore wind energy generation will need to be sited both offshore and 
onshore. Understanding the constraints related to the shared use of new 
or existing transmission rights-of-way will allow transmission planning 
entities and siting authorities to make decisions using the best 
available information and science. DOE is considering recommendations 
to support planning entities and siting authorities in the decision-
making process. In particular, DOE seeks to understand transmission 
siting constraints both offshore and onshore, environmental and energy 
justice priorities, community impacts, information gaps, and technical 
assistance needs through the following questions:
    1. What considerations need to be accounted for when siting 
transmission for offshore wind energy generation in offshore locations 
on the West Coast?
    a. For the considerations identified, what information is currently 
available?
    b. For the considerations identified, do any lack existing data 
sources to rely on? If no data sources are available, are there 
existing methods to collect, survey, or otherwise measure the 
characteristics?
    2. What considerations need to be accounted for when siting 
transmission for offshore wind energy generation in onshore locations 
on the West Coast?
    a. For the considerations identified, what information is currently 
available?
    b. For the considerations identified, do any lack existing data 
sources to rely on? If no data sources are available, are there 
existing methods to collect, survey, or otherwise measure the 
characteristics?
    3. What environmental justice and energy justice issues should 
inform how transmission is sited and implemented on the West Coast for 
offshore wind?
    4. What specific topics about offshore wind transmission siting, 
technology, and benefits are not well understood by yourself or your 
organization?
    a. What types of educational materials or research products, if 
any, would improve your understanding and awareness of these topics?
    b. What format should these resources be distributed in (e.g., 
written, webinar, meetings, website content, technical report, etc.)?
    c. How should information from ocean co-users \3\ be integrated 
into educational materials or research products?
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    \3\ Ocean co-users include, but are not limited to, fishing 
organizations, maritime shipping industry, or other commercial and 
recreational ocean users.
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    d. What specific data or information can be provided by ocean co-
users for the purpose of filling knowledge gaps? How should information 
from ocean co-users be disseminated or shared?
    5. What forms of assistance (technical assistance or otherwise) 
would support efficient and equitable siting and development of 
offshore wind transmission infrastructure?
    6. Do you have any additional information or thoughts you want to 
provide about transmission infrastructure related to offshore wind 
energy?

IV. Response Guidelines

    Responses to the RFI must be provided in writing and submitted 
electronically to [email protected] no later than 5:00 p.m. 
EDT on October 3, 2024. Include ``RFI for Offshore Wind Transmission'' 
in the subject line of the email. Responses must be provided as a 
Microsoft Word (.docx) or PDF attachment to the email, and no more than 
10 pages in length, 12-point font, 1-inch margins. It is recommended 
that attachments with file sizes exceeding 25MB be compressed (i.e., 
zipped) to ensure message delivery. Please do not feel obligated to 
submit long, formal responses. If you or your

[[Page 67077]]

organization are resource-constrained (time, staff, etc.) and only have 
the capacity to share short or informal notes or thoughts, DOE still 
wants to hear from you.
    For ease of replying and to aid categorization of your responses, 
please copy and paste the RFI questions, including the question 
numbering, and use them as a template for your response. Respondents 
may answer as many or as few questions as they wish. DOE will not 
respond to individual submissions. A response to this RFI will not be 
viewed as a binding commitment to develop or pursue the project or 
ideas discussed.
    Respondents are requested to provide the following information at 
the start of their response to this RFI:
     Company/institution/agency/person name.
     Company/institution/agency/person contact information.
    This RFI is solely a request for information and is not a grant 
announcement. DOE is not accepting applications, nor will DOE reimburse 
any of respondents' costs in preparing a response. Any information 
obtained as a result of this RFI is intended to be used by the Federal 
Government on a non-attribution basis for planning and strategy 
development; this RFI does not constitute a formal announcement for 
applications or abstracts. Your response to this notice will be treated 
as information only. DOE will review and consider all responses in its 
formulation of program strategies for the identified materials of 
interest that are the subject of this request. Respondents are advised 
that DOE is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the 
information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to 
any information submitted under this RFI. Responses to this RFI do not 
bind DOE to any further actions related to these topics.

Sensitive Indigenous Knowledge and Cultural Information

    The intent of this RFI is not to solicit any sensitive information 
about cultural, traditional, sacred resources, or Traditional 
Indigenous Knowledge that is not already in the public domain. 
Therefore, respondents are strongly advised NOT to include any 
sensitive information about cultural, traditional, or sacred resources 
or Traditional Indigenous Knowledge that respondents would not want 
publicly released. Tribal Nations should be aware that responses to 
this RFI can be subject to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request 
and may result in the disclosure of information to the public. If a 
Tribal Nation chooses to provide information that the Tribal Nation 
believes to be confidential and exempt by law from public disclosure, 
the Tribal Nation should submit via email two well marked copies: one 
marked ``information exempt from disclosure'' and one marked 
``information subject to disclosure'' as described in the section 
below. If a Tribal Nation wants to discuss, among other topics related 
to this RFI, concerns about sensitive resources, the Tribal Nation is 
encouraged to request tribal consultation. Tribal Nations can find an 
explanation on the scope of Federal agencies' authorities to limit the 
disclosure of information about Tribal resources to the public on pages 
25 to 29 of the ``Best Practices Guide for Federal Agencies Regarding 
Tribal and Native Hawaiian Sacred Sites.'' \4\
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    \4\ https://www.bia.gov/sites/default/files/media_document/sacred_sites_guide_508_2023-1205.pdf.
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Confidential Business Information

    Because information received in response to this RFI may be used to 
inform future programs and/or otherwise be made available to the 
public, respondents are strongly advised NOT to include any information 
in their responses that might be considered confidential business 
information pursuant to 10 CFR 1004.11.
    Any person submitting information believed to be confidential and 
exempt by law from public disclosure should submit via email two well 
marked copies: one copy of the document marked ``Confidential 
Information'' including all the information believed to be 
confidential, and one copy of the document marked ``Non-Confidential'' 
with the information believed to be confidential deleted. DOE will make 
its own determination about the confidential status of the information 
and treat it according to its determination. The copy containing 
confidential information must include a cover sheet marked as follows: 
identifying the specific pages containing confidential, proprietary, or 
privileged information: ``Notice of Restriction on Disclosure and Use 
of Data: Pages [list applicable pages] of this response may contain 
confidential, commercial, or financial information that is exempt from 
public disclosure.'' The Government may use or disclose any information 
that is not appropriately marked or otherwise restricted, regardless of 
source. In addition, (1) the header and footer of every page that 
contains confidential, proprietary, or privileged information must be 
marked as follows: ``Contains Confidential, Commercial, or Financial 
Information Exempt from Public Disclosure''; and (2) every line and 
paragraph containing proprietary, privileged, or trade secret 
information must be clearly marked with [[double brackets]] or 
highlighting.

Signing Authority

    This document of the Department of Energy was signed on August 7, 
2024, by Maria D. Robinson, Director, Grid Deployment Office, pursuant 
to delegated authority from the Secretary of Energy. That document with 
the original signature and date is maintained by DOE. For 
administrative purposes only, and in compliance with requirements of 
the Office of the Federal Register, the undersigned DOE Federal 
Register Liaison Officer has been authorized to sign and submit the 
document in electronic format for publication, as an official document 
of the Department of Energy. The administrative process in no way 
alters the legal effect of this document upon publication in the 
Federal Register.

    Signed in Washington, DC, on August 13, 2024.
Treena V. Garrett,
Federal Register Liaison Officer, U.S. Department of Energy.
[FR Doc. 2024-18395 Filed 8-16-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P