Uncategorized

Subscribe to Uncategorized via RSS

On September 25, 2012, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (“Second Circuit”) issued a non-precedential summary order affirming FERC’s reissuance of a license to Erie Boulevard Hydropower, L.P. (“Erie”) for the School Street Hydroelectric Project (“School Street Project”).  The School Street Project is located on the Mohawk River near the City of Cohoes, New York.  Specifically, the Second Circuit determined that a proposed settlement agreement that modified certain aspects of the project’s hydroelectric license application was not a “material amendment” of the license application and thus, upheld FERC’s reissuance of the license. 

On September 21, 2012, FERC conditionally approved the Midwest Independent Transmission System Operator, Inc.’s (“MISO”) revisions to its tariff provisions that designate System Support Resources (“SSRs”) and delay the retirement or suspension of certain generation units within MISO that are needed for reliability.  MISO explained that it believes that significant usage of its SSR program is imminent in light of new environmental regulations and renewable portfolio standards on the horizon, and certain enhancements and clarifications were necessary as a result.

On September 19, 2012, the Board of Directors of the New York Independent System Operator (“NYISO”) released the 2012 Reliability Needs Assessment (“RNA”), a review of the reliability of the New York bulk power system spanning the ten year planning horizon from 2013-2023.  NYISO identified potential resource adequacy and transmission security issues that might develop during the ten year period. 

On September 20, 2012, the Commission released an order making a preliminary finding that J.P. Morgan Ventures Energy Corporation (“JP Morgan”) may have omitted material information or submitted misleading information in communications with FERC, the California Independent System Operator Corporation (“CAISO”), and CAISO’s Department of Market Monitoring (“DMM”).  The Commission directed JP Morgan to (1) show cause why JP Morgan did not violate FERC regulations under the Federal Power Act (“FPA”); and (2) show cause why its authorization to sell electricity, capacity, and ancillary services at market-based rates should not be suspended.  

On September 21, 2012, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upheld a 2009 California federal district court decision dismissing claims by an Alaska Native American village against a large number of coal, oil and electric utility companies that the greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions of these companies constituted a public nuisance by causing massive erosion around the coastal village.  See Native Village of Kivalina v. Exxon-Mobil Corp., No. 09-17490 (Sept. 21, 2012).  The case is the first major court decision in this area following the Supreme Court’s decision in American Electric Power Co., Inc. v. Connecticut, 131 S. Ct. 2527 (2011), which held that federal common law claims based on GHG emissions are displaced by federal regulation of GHGs under the Clean Air Act.

On September 20, 2012, FERC granted Idaho Wind Partners 1, LLC’s (“Idaho Wind”) June 15, 2012 petition for declaratory order finding that Idaho Power Company’s (“Idaho Power”) proposed Schedule 74 curtailment policy, if approved by the  Idaho Public Utilities Commission (“Idaho PUC”), would be inconsistent with section 210 of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act (“PURPA”) and the Commission’s regulations.

On September 20, 2012, FERC announced that it has created a new Office of Energy Infrastructure and Security (“OEIS”).  FERC stated that OEIS will collaborate with the Office of Electric Reliability (“OER”) and the North American Electric Reliability Corporation in order to identify and mitigate potential cyber and physical security risks to FERC-jurisdictional facilities.