The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About10.9.20 Board Correspondence -FW_ Request for Additional Information issued in FERC P-619-169 From:Schuman, Amy To:Alpert, Bruce;Bennett, Robin;Clerk of the Board;Connelly, Bill;Cook, Holly;Lambert, Steve;Lucero, Debra;McCracken, Shari;Paulsen, Shaina;Pickett, Andy;Ring, Brian;Ritter, Tami; Rodas, Amalia;Sweeney, Kathleen;Teeter, Doug Subject:Board Correspondence -FW: Request for Additional Information issued in FERC P-619-169 Date:Friday, October 9, 2020 11:55:40 AM Good morning, Please see the email below from FERC. Amy Schuman Associate Clerk of the Board Butte County Administration 25 County Center Drive, Suite 200, Oroville, CA 95965 O: 530.552.3300 |D: 530.552.3308 | F: 530.538.7120 Twitter | Facebook | YouTube | Pinterest -----Original Message----- From: 'FERC eSubscription' <eSubscription@ferc.gov> Sent: Friday, October 9, 2020 11:45 AM Subject: Request for Additional Information issued in FERC P-619-169 .ATTENTION: This message originated from outside Butte County. Please exercise judgment before opening attachments, clicking on links, or replying.. On 10/9/2020, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), Washington D.C., issued this document: Docket(s): P-619-169 Lead Applicant: Pacific Gas and Electric Company Filing Type: Request for Additional Information General Correspondence Description: Letter requesting Pacific Gas and Electric Company to file an amendment application within 45 days re the plans to remove a single span of the Grizzly Tap conductor for the Bucks Creek Hydroelectric Project under P-619. To view the document for this Issuance, click here https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://elibrary.ferc.gov/eLibrary/filelist?accession_num=20201009- 3043__;!!KNMwiTCp4spf!TkBsK3TEXHup8HQI_PvRyugnAJGXMjX3XfBgM1aeeZr_8MMORrRK8Q01t-aBcnhbAnkOGEBV2ps$ To modify your subscriptions, click here: https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://ferconline.ferc.gov/eSubscription.aspx__;!!KNMwiTCp4spf!TkBsK3TEXHup8HQI_PvRyugnAJGXMjX3XfBgM1aeeZr_8MMORrRK8Q01t- aBcnhbAnkOoRJhzgc$ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Please do not respond to this email. Online help is available here: https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://www.ferc.gov/efiling-help.asp__;!!KNMwiTCp4spf!TkBsK3TEXHup8HQI_PvRyugnAJGXMjX3XfBgM1aeeZr_8MMORrRK8Q01t- aBcnhbAnkOgmEe84U$ or for phone support, call 866-208-3676. Comments and Suggestions can be sent to this email address: mailto:FERCOnlineSupport@Ferc.gov FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION Washington, DC 20426 OFFICE OF ENERGY PROJECTS Project No. 619-169 –California Bucks Creek Hydroelectric Project Pacific Gas and Electric Company October 9, 2020 VIA FERC Service Mr. Jan Nimick, Vice President- Power Generation Pacific Gas and Electric Company 245 Market Street Mail Code: N11E San Francisco, CA 94105 Subject: Information Request Relating to Grizzly Tap Conductor Removal Dear Mr. Nimick: On September 14, 2020, and supplemented October 6, 2020, you filed a letter with the Commission’s Division of Dam Safety and Inspections – San Francisco Regional Office (SFRO) discussing your plans to remove a single span of the Grizzly Tap 12 conductor, part of the Bucks Creek Hydroelectric Project No. 619. You state that following the Camp Fire in 2018, PG&E committed to de- energizing the 56-mile-long Caribou-Palermo line, which has now been completed. The Grizzly Powerhouse connects to the Caribou-Palermo line via the 4.2-mile-long Grizzly Tap. You explain that since de-energizing the Caribou-Palermo line, you have identified a potential public safety risk associated with the de-energized line, determining that energized lines in the same vicinity as the Caribou-Palermo line may still have the potential to induce voltage and current on to the Caribou-Palermo line through induction. Given this risk, you state that you took immediate mitigation steps by isolating and grounding sections of the Caribou-Palermo line itself. 1 Your September 14 and October 6, 2020 filings are also available on the Commission’s eLibrary system (FERC Accession Numbers: 20200914-5150, and 20201006-5144). 2 Pacific Gas and Electric Company, 52 FPC 1898 (1974). Project No. 619-169 - 2 - To remediate the risk specifically associated with the Grizzly Tap interconnection, you state in your September 14 filing that you plan on removing a single span of the Grizzly Tap conductor, stretching approximately 900 feet, between the Bucks Creek Substation Yard and wooden poles on the Caribou-Palermo line. In your September 14 filing you provide a detailed proposed workplan for the removal of the single span of the Grizzly Tap conductor and explain that there would be no ground disturbance associated with the removal because you will use helicopters to perform the removal. In your October 6 filing you describe how you will re-establish the transmission of power from the Grizzly Powerhouse, which will involve ground disturbing activities. We are aware that prior to your September 14, 2020 filing, you were in communication with Commission staff via email and phone, regarding the steps that would be required to complete the transmission line removal. On July 31, and August 7, 2020, Commission staff informed you that removal of the transmission line would require an application for amendment of the project license. This is because the transmission line is a project feature, and as such, the proposed action would require an amendment pursuant to 18 C.F.R. §4.200 (2020). However, in your September 14, 2020 filing, you state that you do not believe that the proposed work requires formal Commission review and authorization. Nevertheless, you failed to notify and report the emergency to the San Francisco Regional Engineer as required under part 12.10(a) of the Commission’s regulations. You state that if the Commission needs additional information or has concerns regarding this work, that you should be informed. th It has come to our attention that the work proposed in your September 14letter has since been mostly completed, unauthorized by neither the Commission’s SFRO or Division of Hydropower Administration and Compliance; as such, it may be considered a 3 violation of your license and made part of the compliance history of the project. Given the initial steps you describe taking to mitigate the potential risk, and the previous indication by Commission staff that such work would require an amendment, within 45 days from the date of this letter, please file: an amendment application, for Commission approval, for the work described in the September 14 and October 6, 2020 letters; a specific description of what has taken place regarding the work proposed; what other options were available to you; and an explanation of why the work was done without waiting for Commission approval of a license amendment or a response to your th September 14 letter. 3 On September 17, 2020, Commission staff spoke with your Supervisor of Hydro licensing, who informed staff that the aforementioned electrical line had been removed. Project No. 619-169 - 3 - Thank you for your cooperation. If you have any questions regarding this letter, please contact Korede Olagbegi at (202) 502-6268 or Korede.Olagbegi@ferc.gov. Sincerely, Kelly Houff Chief, Engineering Resources Branch Division of Hydropower Administration and Compliance