These are summaries of orders voted by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission at its December 19 public meeting. The summaries are produced by FERC’s Office of External Affairs and are intended to provide only a general synopsis of the orders. These summaries are not intended as a substitute for the Commission’s official orders. To determine the specific actions and the Commission’s reasoning, please consult the individual orders when they are posted to FERC’s eLibrary.
Item E-2
Emera Energy LNG, LLC, et al., Docket No. ER23-2657-001, et al.
ORDER ACCEPTING AND SUSPENDING MARKET-BASED RATE TARIFF REVISIONS
The order accepts and suspends, subject to refund the market-based rate tariff revisions filed by Emera Energy LNG, LLC, Emera Energy Services Subsidiary No. 11 LLC, Emera Energy Services Subsidiary No. 12 LLC, Emera Energy Services Subsidiary No. 13 LLC, and Emera Energy Services Subsidiary No. 15 LLC. The tariff revisions would remove the restrictions on the sales of electric capacity, energy and ancillary services at market-based rates in the Duke Energy Florida, LLC, Florida Municipal Power Pool, Florida Power & Light Company and Seminole Electric Cooperative balancing authority areas. The order accepts the tariff revisions subject to compliance and the outcome of the pending proceeding in Docket No. ER10-1437 (the pending triennial market power analysis for the Southeast region).
Item E-3
Public Utilities Commission of California v. Sellers of Long-Term Contracts to the California Department of Water Resources, Docket No. EL02-60-013, et al.
ORDER ON INITIAL DECISION AND REVISED PARTIAL INITIAL DECISION AND ESTABLISHING HEARING AND SETTLEMENT JUDGE PROCEDURES
The order reverses in part, and affirms in part, an Initial Decision and Revised Partial Initial Decision concerning whether the Mobile-Sierra presumption of just and reasonable contract rates applies to certain long-term contracts between the California Department of Water Resources and, respectively, Shell Energy North America, L.P. and Iberdrola Renewables, LLC. The order also establishes hearing and settlement judge procedures to determine whether the rates contained in the Shell Contract are unjust and unreasonable and, if so, to establish a corresponding remedy.
Item E- 4
Potomac-Appalachian Highline Transmission, LLC, Docket No. ER09-1256-000, et al.
ORDER APPROVING SETTLEMENT
The order approves the settlement of all outstanding issues in the captioned dockets, which involved accounting disputes on a transmission project that was cancelled prior to construction.
Item E-5
Southwest Power Pool, Inc., Docket No. ER22-2339-001
ORDER ON COMPLIANCE FILING
The order accepts Southwest Power Pool, Inc.’s proposed tariff revisions in compliance with Order No. 881 and the Commission’s May 2023 order on compliance filing, subject to further compliance.
Item E-6
Greenbacker Renewable Energy Company LLC, Docket No. EL24-4-000
ORDER GRANTING PETITION FOR DECLARATORY ORDER
The order grants Greenbacker Renewable Energy Company LLC and Greenbacker Renewable Energy Company II, LLC’s petition for declaratory order, filed on behalf of themselves and current and future parent holding companies and subsidiaries, requesting that the Commission exempt them from certain of the Commission’s regulations under the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 2005.
Item E-7
PJM Interconnection, L.L.C., Docket No. ER24-163-000
ORDER ON ABANDONED PLANT INCENTIVE
The order grants Exelon’s request, made on behalf of three of its affiliates, Baltimore Gas and Electric Company, PECO Energy Company, and Potomac Electric Power Company, for authorization to recover 100 percent of prudently incurred costs associated with investment in certain transmission projects referred to as the Brandon Shores Project in the event the project is canceled or abandoned for reasons beyond Exelon’s control.
Item E-8
Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, Inc., et al., Docket No. ER21-2818-000, et al.
ORDER ON INITIAL DECISION
The order affirms in part, reverses in part, modifies in part, and clarifies in part an Initial Decision addressing the contract termination and procedures for members exiting from Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, Inc.
Item E-9
Southwest Power Pool, Inc., Docket No. ER23-2183-000
ORDER REJECTING TARIFF PROVISIONS
The order rejects Southwest Power Pool’s proposed tariff revisions to its Western Energy Imbalance Service tariff to modify the language related to the residual supply index and to ensure that the resources of affiliated market participants are evaluated together.
Item E-10
Southwest Power Pool, Inc., Docket No. ER22-1846-004
ORDER ADDRESSING ARGUMENTS RAISED ON REHEARING
The order addresses a request for rehearing of the Commission’s July 13, 2023, order which set aside a prior decision, and ultimately rejected Southwest Power Pool, Inc.’s tariff revisions proposing to establish a process through which, on a case-by-case basis, the costs of a transmission facility with a voltage level between 100 kV and 300 kV can be allocated on a regional, postage-stamp basis. The order sustains the result of the July 13, 2023 order.
Item E-11
Solar Energy Industries Association v. Midcontinent Independent System Operator, Inc., Docket No. EL23-28-001 and Midcontinent Independent System Operator, Inc., Docket No. ER23-1195-002
ORDER ADDRESSING ARGUMENTS RAISED ON REHEARING
The order addresses rehearing requests filed in response to two related orders issued on August 31, 2023, which address MISO’s prohibition of Dispatchable Intermittent Resources (DIR) from providing ancillary services. The order (1) sustains the Commission’s determination in Docket No. EL23-28-001, which denied Solar Energy Industries Association’s complaint requesting that DIRs be allowed to participate in MISO’s ancillary service markets; and (2) sustains the Commission’s determination in Docket No. ER23-1195-002, which accepted MISO’s proposed Tariff revisions rendering DIRs ineligible to provide Up Ramp Capability and Down Ramp Capability. The order finds that the determinations in the underlying orders apply to hybrid resources registered as DIRs in addition to stand-alone DIRs.
Item E-12
Summit Ridge Energy, LLC, Docket No. EL23-106-000
ORDER GRANTING PETITION FOR DECLARATORY ORDER
The order grants Summit Ridge Energy, LLC and Osaka Gas USA Corporation’s petition for declaratory order, filed on behalf of themselves and current and future parent holding companies and subsidiaries, requesting that the Commission exempt them from certain of the Commission’s regulations under the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 2005.
Item E-13
PJM Interconnection, LLC Docket Nos ER22-2931-000 and EL24-26-000
ORDER ON UNEXECUTED INTERCONNECTION SERVICE AGREEMENTS
The order accepts for filing an unexecuted Interconnection Service Agreement and unexecuted Interconnection Construction Agreement among PJM, as the transmission provider, New Market Solar LLC as interconnection customer, and Delmarva Power and Light Company as transmission owner. The order accepts the agreements for filing, suspends their effectiveness for five months subject to refund, and establishes paper hearing procedures to develop a further record. The order also initiates a proceeding pursuant to ,section 206 of the FPA and consolidates both proceedings.
Item E-14
Energy Harbor LLC v. PJM Interconnection, LLC, Docket No. EL23-63-000
ORDER DENYING COMPLAINT
The order addresses a complaint filed against PJM Interconnection, L.L.C. alleging that it improperly assessed penalties against Energy Harbor LLC (Energy Harbor) because it failed to properly account for the fact that Energy Harbor was on a maintenance outage. The order denies the complaint and finds that, because Energy Harbor was also on a forced outage, the tariff requires penalties to be assessed.
Item E-15
PJM Interconnection, L.L.C., Docket No. ER23-2975-000
ORDER APPROVING UNCONTESTED SETTLEMENT
The order addresses a Settlement that resolves 15 different complaints filed against PJM Interconnection, L.L.C. regarding penalties it assessed on generators that failed to perform during Winter Storm Elliott. The order finds that the sole entity filing comments opposing the Settlement is not a party to the proceedings and that the Settlement is therefore uncontested. The order approves the Settlement as fair, reasonable and in the public interest.
Item E-16
Essential P0wer OPP, LLC, et al v. PJM Interconnection LLC., Docket No. EL12-53-003
ORDER ADDRESSING ARGUMENTS RAISED ON REHEARING AND SETTING ASIDE PRIOR ORDER, IN PART
The order addresses a request for rehearing alleging that the Commission erred in granting a late intervention filed by Chief Conemaugh Power, LLC and Chief Keystone Power, LLC as part of the Commission’s September 25, 2023, order granting waiver of certain provisions of PJM Interconnection, LLC’s Tariff. The rehearing order sets aside the prior order, in part, by specifying that the Chief Companies’ late intervention is granted only with respect to the waiver sub-docket and does not provide party status to Chief Companies with respect to the complaint proceedings in the root docket.
Item G-1
BP Pipelines (Alaska) Inc., et al., Docket No. OR14-6-003
ORDER ON INITIAL DECISION
The order affirms in part and reverses in part an Initial Decision addressing the Trans Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS) Quality Bank valuation formula for Resid.
Item C-1
ANR Pipeline Company, Docket No.: CP23-15-000
ORDER ISSUING CERTIFICATE AND APPROVING ABANDONMENT
The order approves ANR Pipeline Company, LLC’s (ANR) application, pursuant to NGA section 7(b) and (c), for authorization to construct and operate the Wisconsin Reliability Project in Wisconsin and Illinois. The project is designed to upgrade existing pipeline and compression facilities and provide 132,000 dekatherms per day of incremental transportation service on ANR’s pipeline system.
Item C-2
Mountain Valley Pipeline, LLC, Docket No. CP16-10-012.
ORDER AMENDING CERTIFICATE
The order approves Mountain Valley Pipeline LLC’s (Mountain Valley) request for NGA section 7(c) authorization to amend its certificate of public convenience and necessity, issued on October 13, 2017, to revise its initial cost-based recourse rates to reflect changes in the cost of construction of the project. Mountain Valley states that it now estimates total construction costs of $6,648,000,000, an increase of 43.9% from its original estimate.
Item C-3
Mountain Valley Pipeline, LLC. Docket No. CP19-14-002
ORDER GRANTING EXTENSION OF TIME REQUEST
The order provides Mountain Valley with a three-year extension of time, until June 18, 2026, to construct and place into service the MVP Southgate Project. The order finds that Mountain Valley has demonstrated good cause for an extension and that the environmental and public interest findings in the Certificate Order remain valid.
Item C-4
Port Arthur LNG Phase II, LLC, PALNG Common Facilities Company, LLC, Docket No. CP20-55-001
ORDER ADDRESSING ARGUMENTS RAISED ON REHEARING, SETTING ASIDE PRIOR ORDER, IN PART
The order responds to arguments raised on rehearing by Port Arthur LNG Phase II, LLC’s and PALNG Common Facilities Company, LLC of the Commission’s September 21, 2023 order granting authorization to expand the Port Arthur LNG Liquefaction Terminal. The order grants the request for rehearing regarding filing requirements for structural and foundational plans and dismisses the motion for clarification as moot.
Item C-5
Georgia-Pacific Consumer Operations LLC, Docket No. CP22-16-000
ORDER APPROVING ABANDONMENT
The order grants Georgia-Pacific’s request to abandon approximately 19.5 miles of 8-inch-diameter pipeline along with certain aboveground facilities located in Union Parish, Louisiana, and Ashley County, Arkansas, which facilities were certificated for Georgia-Pacific's own use. Upon abandonment, Georgia-Pacific will not own or operate any jurisdictional natural gas facilities, thus the order also grants Georgia-Pacific’s request to abandon its certificate.
Item H-1
HGE Energy Storage 3, LLC, Project No. 15287-000
ORDER DENYING PRELIMINARY PERMIT APPLICATION
The order denies the preliminary permit application filed by HGE Energy Storage 3, LLC to study the feasibility of the Fort Ross Storage Project No. 15287, proposed to be located on the Pacific coast in Sonoma County, California, because the proposed project boundary includes land protected by a national monument, managed by BLM.
Item H-2
PacifiCorp, Project No. 2082-071
ORDER FINDING LICENSING NOT REQUIRED, AMENDING LICENSE, AND REVISING ANNUAL CHARGES
The order approves PacifiCorp's application to amend the Klamath Hydroelectric Project No. 2082 license to exclude the Keno development. The project is located primarily on the Klamath River and Fall Creek, in Klamath County, Oregon and Siskiyou County, California. The order finds that licensing is not required for the Keno development and amends the Klamath Project license to exclude the development and associated facilities.