Qualifying Facilities (QF) FAQ

Facilities larger than 1 MW (1000kW) in size as defined by maximum net power production capacity must file a Form No. 556 either as a self-certification (or self-recertification) or as an application for Commission certification.

No. Effective 06/01/2010, the Form No. 556 must be filed electronically via the Commission Electronic Filing (eFiling) system. In order to submit the Form No. 556, you must first download the form-fillable pdf of Form No. 556. Once you have completed the pdf, navigate with your browser to the Commission’s eFiling web site and submit the completed form as an attachment to an efiling submission. Information about eFiling is available on the Commission’s eFiling web page.

For all questions concerning filling out the Form No. 556 or QF-related policy, please email form556@ferc.gov or call Loni Silva at 202-502-6233, Jerilyn Sodee at 202-502-8159 or Adam Alvarez at 202-502-6734.

If you have questions about or would like assistance using the Commission’s eFiling system, please contact the eFiling Help Desk at efiling@ferc.gov or 202-502-8258.

18 C.F.R. § 292.204(a)(3) allows an applicant to request a waiver to modify the method of calculation pursuant to 18 C.F.R. § 292.204(a)(2) to determine if two facilities are considered to be located at the same site, for good cause. 18 C.F.R. § 292.205(c) allows an applicant to request waiver of the requirements of 18 C.F.R. §§ 292.205(a) and (b) for operating and efficiency upon a showing that the facility will produce significant energy savings.

18 C.F.R. § 292.203(d)(2) allows an applicant to request a waiver of the Form No. 556 filing requirements, for good cause. Applicants filing a petition for declaratory order requesting waiver under 18 C.F.R. § 292.203(d)(2) do not need to complete or submit a Form No. 556 with their petition.

A request for waiver of any of the requirements described above must be submitted as a petition for declaratory order, with the appropriate filing fee for a petition for declaratory order.

Yes. Applicants requesting Commission recertification as part of a request for waiver of one of the requirements described in question 5 should electronically submit their completed Form No. 556 along with their petition for declaratory order, rather than filing their Form No. 556 as a separate request for Commission recertification. Only the filing fee for the petition for declaratory order must be paid to cover both the waiver request and the request for recertification if such requests are made simultaneously.

18 C.F.R. 292.203 establishes the exemption, for generators with net power production capacities of 1 MW or less, from the requirement to file a Form No. 556 in order to obtain QF status. To determine if you are exempt from the requirement to file a Form No. 556 for your facility, based on the small size of your facility, download the Form No. 556 and complete section 7. If the value you obtain in line 7g is less than or equal to 1000 kW, then your facility is exempt from the Form No. 556 filing requirement.

Yes. Although facilities below 1 MW or less are exempt from the requirement to file, there is no prohibition against filing the Form No. 556 application either for self-certification or Commission certification for these facilities.

No. Facilities 1 MW or less are no longer required to file for QF status regardless of whether they filed in the past.

Yes. A QF with a net power production capacity of 500 kW or greater must still provide 90-day notification of its QF status to the local utility to which it connects, even if it is exempt from the Form No. 556 filing requirement. Such notification can be made by a simple written notice or, if the applicant has filed a Form No. 556, by sending the utility a copy of the completed form.

The utility may require that the QF provide additional technical information as necessary to determine the impact of the QF on the safety and reliability of the electric system. Such information may include principal components of the facility (electric generators, transformers, and switchyard equipment), fuel type, maximum gross and net output, expected installation and operation. A purchasing utility may also ask a QF that has not filed a Form No. 556 to provide the utility an attestation that the QF meets the requirements for QF status.

For those facilities that are required to file a Form No. 556 to obtain QF status, recertification is required to report any change in material facts and representations previously made in previous certification(s). However, the Commission clarified in Order No. 732 that it will not consider a change in ownership to be a change in material facts and representations made in the previous filing if no owner increases their equity interest by at least 10 percent from the equity interest previously reported.

18 CFR § 292.203(d)(2) establishes that the Commission may, for good cause, waive the requirements to file a Form No. 556 to obtain QF status. Applicants seeking such waiver must file a petition for declaratory order describing in detail the reasons waiver is being sought.

No. Applicants are no longer required to draft or submit a notice for the FR. Effective June 1, 2010 the Commission will continue to publish FR notices for certain types of applications (see 18 C.F.R. 292.207(c)), however such notices will be automatically generated by the Commission’s eFiling system using information provided by applicants in their Form No. 556 filings.