Co-Authored By Andrea Sarmentero Garzón, Jennings Strouss The Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (PURPA) was enacted Nov. 9, 1978, to promote energy conservation (reduce demand) and promote greater use (increase supply) of domestic energy and renewable energy resources in response to the 1973 energy crisis. Much has changed…
In another blow to the construction of the 600-mile Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP), certificated by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on October 13, 2017, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals on August 6: (1) vacated as arbitrary and…
Co-authored by Jennings, Strouss & Salmon energy attorney Andrea I. Sarmentero Garzón On June 29, 2018, FERC issued an order rejecting two proposals (i.e., the Capacity Repricing and the MOPR-Ex proposals) filed by PJM Interconnection, L.L.C. (“PJM”) to address subsidization of resources in its capacity markets (Docket No. ER18-1314). The…
Co-authored By Gary Newell and Andrea Sarmentero Garzon The following are summaries of recent orders issued by FERC in four proceedings in which Jennings Strouss was involved. The proceedings involve rates for transmission service, wholesale power rates, and competition in RTO markets. The Commission denied a request for a transmission…
By: Deborah Swanstrom* The issue of coordination with Affected Systems has long been a proverbial “elephant in the room” when generation project developers request interconnection service from a Transmission Provider and the interconnection may impact neighboring systems. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) largely side-stepped the issue when it originally…
On February 15, 2018, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”) issued Order No. 841, Electric Storage in Markets Operated by Regional Transmission Organizations and Independent System Operators. Order No. 841 requires tariff reforms in order to facilitate the participation of electric storage resources in capacity, energy, and ancillary services markets…
Jennings, Strouss & Salmon energy attorney Andrea I. Sarmentero Garzón featured in the latest edition of the EBA Journal. Read the full article: Developments In FERC Policy For Determining Return On Equity
Jennings, Strouss & Salmon energy attorneys Joel Green & Melissa Alfano, are featured in the latest edition of District Energy Magazine. Read the full article : FERC addresses natural gas indexliquidity and transparency issues
Co-authored by Andrea I. Sarmentero Garzón and Joel L. Greene On September 29, 2017, Energy Secretary Rick Perry directed the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to initiate a rulemaking that could result in major subsidies for coal fired and nuclear powered electric generators in RTO markets. The Secretary argues that…
On June 29, 2017, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) will hold a technical conference to discuss liquidity in the natural gas markets and what, if anything, the industry or FERC can do to increase transparency and robustness in natural gas price formation. The day-long conference will feature three stakeholder…
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued a decision recently finding that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”) had authority to order the Bonneville Power Administration (“BPA”) to pay money to a public utility. This holding is significant because BPA is a governmental entity exempt from FERC’s…
Jennings, Strouss & Salmon attorneys, Deborah A. Swanstrom and Andrea I. Sarmentero Garzón, are featured in the Second Quarter 2017 issue of District Energy magazine. Read the full article: FERC to reform interconnection procedures for large generators.
On August 8, 2016, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (“Fifth Circuit” or “Court”) issued a Decision on El Paso Electric Company’s (“El Paso”) petitions for review of FERC Orders addressing compliance with the requirements of Order No. 1000, et al., in the WestConnect planning region….
Jennings, Strouss & Salmon energy attorney, Gary J. Newell is featured in the latest edition of District Energy magazine. Read the full article: CHP, demand response and the Supreme Court’s decision in FERC v. EPSA
Over the past few years, the providers of public utility services have become increasingly aware of the need to protect their computer networks from electronic intrusion by individuals or organizations seeking to destroy equipment or disrupt service. A recent court decision brings to light another cybersecurity issue that also should be of concern to utilities—namely, the theft of customer financial information and the potential liability for a utility that can arise from insufficient data protection.
Last month we informed you that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”) had received initial comments on its proposed policy to allow interstate pipelines to recover the costs of modernizing their facilities through a cost tracker. On February 26th, FERC received…
In November 2014, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”) proposed a new policy statement that outlines the standards interstate natural gas pipelines would need to satisfy in order to recover the costs to modernize their facilities and infrastructure. Initial comments on the…
On May 23, 2014, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit issued a decision with important implications for the owners of resources used to control the amount of demand a retail electric customer places on the power system − so-called “demand response” (DR) resources −…
JSS energy attorney Andrea I. Sarmentero explains FERC Order No. 1000 and its five primary goals.
The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (“PHMSA”) received approval from the Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) to continue using, with changes, various “Incident and Annual Reports for Gas Pipeline Operators” under OMB Control No. 2137-0522. PHMSA had initially proposed changes to six specific forms that…
On November 20, 2014, The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC” or “Commission”) issued an Order (“Fuel Assurance Order”) directing each regional transmission organization (“RTO”) and independent system operator (“ISO”) to file a report on the status of its efforts to address market and system performance associated with “fuel…
Jennings, Strouss & Salmon energy attorney, Gary J. Newell, is featured in the latest edition of District Energy magazine. Read the full article: Recent PURPA Enforcement Actions: Do they signal a policy shift at FERC? Watch this video to hear Gary Newell discuss additional information about the Public Utility Regulatory…
We are pleased to announce that Jennings, Strouss & Salmon, PLC received a Tier 1 National Ranking for Energy Law on the 2015 “Best Law Firms” list compiled by U.S. News & World Report and Best Lawyers®. We consider this a great and significant honor. Only 37 of the 110 firms included on…
Washington, D.C. (May 5, 2014) – Jennings, Strouss & Salmon, PLC announced that Debra D. Roby, Joel L. Greene, Alan I. Robbins and Deborah A. Swanstrom have been listed in the 2014 Washington DC Super Lawyers® in the area of Energy and Natural Resources. Roby is Chair of the firm’s Energy practice group and has extensive experience representing clients before the…
Natural gas is fuel increasingly used to generate electricity. To better coordinate the scheduling timelines and practices of natural gas pipelines with electric utilities, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”) issued two significant orders. First, FERC issued a notice of proposed rulemaking on the Coordination of the Scheduling Processes of…
At its monthly meeting on March 20, 2014, the Commission initiated a show cause proceeding, pursuant to section 5 of the Natural Gas Act. The Order requires all pipelines to either (1) revise their tariffs in accordance with the Commission’s capacity release posting regulations; or (2) otherwise demonstrate that they…
In an order issued this afternoon, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) adopted further changes to the Electric Quarterly Report (EQR) Data Dictionary. FERC stated that it adopted version 3.0 of the EQR Data Dictionary in order to implement the revised EQR filing process and to update the list of…
On February 28, 2014, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued an order extending and setting the deadlines to file electric quarterly reports (EQRs) for the third quarter (Q3) 2013, the fourth quarter (Q4) 2013 and the first quarter (Q1) 2014. FERC also reminded EQR filers that the deadline to…
On February 20, 2014, the staff of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) issued a No-Action letter temporarily removing a regulatory barrier to Southwest Power Pool’s (SPP) planned March 1, 2014 launch of its Integrated Marketplace. The No-Action letter is a stop-gap measure that will expire on the earlier of…
FERC recently issued a reminder that entities responsible for filing Electronic Quarterly Reports (EQRs) must complete the Company Registration prior to filing. Filing entities may obtain a Company Identifier (CID) number from the FERC by completing a Company Registration on the FERC website. FERC extended the deadlines to file the…
On January 16, 2014, the FERC issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to approve NERC Reliability Standard EOP-010-1. The proposed standard is the first step in implementing Order No. 779, where the Commission directed NERC to develop reliability standards aimed at mitigating the effects of geomagnetic disturbances (“GMDs”) on the…
The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act signed by President Obama in July 2010 (“Dodd-Frank Act”)[1] mandated that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC“) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC“) enter into a memorandum of understanding (“MOU”) by January 2011 outlining how the two agencies can exercise…
Jennings, Strouss & Salmon attorney, Richard Lieberman, authors “Corporate Power Marriages: Special Considerations for Partial Interests in Power Production,” published in IDEA District Energy Magazine’s “From a Legal Perspective” section.
On July 26, 2013 the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC” or “Commission”) issued three orders (“July 2013 Orders”)[1] in the context of East Kentucky Power Cooperative’s (“EKPC”) integration into PJM Interconnection, LLC (“PJM”) (Docket Nos. ER13-1177-000 et.al, ER13-1570-000 and EL13-68-000). The July 2013 Orders, the Commission reaffirmed that the concept…
There are three basic types of transactional reporting requirements imposed by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) in regulations implementing the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (“Dodd-Frank Act”), including reporting of: (1) historical swaps; (2) new swaps; and (3) commodity trade options. Following the issuance of temporary…
Phoenix (June 17, 2013) – Jennings, Strouss & Salmon, a leading Phoenix-based law firm, is pleased to announce that Dick Silverman has joined the O’Connor House Board of Directors. The O’Connor House’s mission is to continue the enduring legacy of Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, while building partnerships and collaborations…
Jennings Strouss energy attorney Deborah A. Swanstrom is featured in the Second Quarter 2013 edition of District Energy magazine in an article entitled, “Dodd-Frank Act Extends Beyond Wall Street to Main Street: Why you may need to report your fuel supply and electricity transactions.” Click here to read the full…
In March, Jennings Strouss was proud to sponsor the American Public Power Association’s (APPA) Legislative Rally Breakfast. The event was attended by some 300 participants, including JSS attorneys Deb Roby, Al Robbins and Debbie Swanstrom. Jennings Strouss will also be a sponsor of the upcoming APPA National Conference & Public…
Over the last few years, various natural gas ratepayer groups have without success mounted a legislative effort to stop natural gas pipeline companies from over-recovering their costs. As discussed below, Capitol Hill may finally be listening. In 2012, the Natural Gas Supply Association released its annual study analyzing the cost…
Phoenix (March 12, 2013) – Jennings, Strouss & Salmon, P.L.C., a leading Phoenix-based law firm, is pleased to announce that Andrea I. Sarmentero Garzón has joined the firm’s energy practice as an associate in its Washington, D.C. office. “We are pleased to welcome Andrea to the firm’s…
The House and the Senate are each considering companion bills aimed at reducing the costs of financing renewable energy projects. In the Senate, Chris Coons (D-Del) introduced on June 7 the Master Limited Partnerships Parity Act. A bipartisan effort with Senator Jerry Moran (R-KS) and five others, this legislation would…
2012 APPA National Conference gold level sponsor, Jennings Strouss, photographed the opening day of the Public Power Expo. More than 1,000 public power leaders networked with more than 120 public power industry suppliers, vendors and consultants and learned about the innovative companies that can help public power utilities succeed.
Public power law firm, Jennings Strouss, hosted a client appreciation dinner at the Space Needle, in Seattle, Washington, Sunday, June 17th, 2012. Jennings Strouss is a gold level sponsor of the 2012 APPA National Convention. The APPA National Conference helps utility leaders and policymakers connect with industry leaders, partners and…
The Bureau of Indian Affairs told the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Wednesday to hold off on granting a preliminary permit for a proposed 2,000- megawatt pump storage hydroelectric project in Arizona, citing concerns about impacts to endangered species and water supplies. The BIA and the Yavapai-Apache Nation echoed concerns…
By Joel L. Greene In an order on rehearing issued March 15, 2012 in Texas Gas Transmission, LLC, 138 FERC ¶ 61,175, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”) took the opportunity to reiterate, and in light of overly broad precedent, clarify the conditions a pipeline must satisfy in order to…
By Debra Roby, Alan Robbins & Daniel Cooper Entities that are included on the NERC Compliance Registry as either a Generator Owner (GO) or Transmission Owner (TO) should be preparing for changes in the NERC Reliability standards FAC-008 and FAC-009. The changes will require at least some modifications to the…
TORONTO, ONTARIO, Feb 23, 2012 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) — Electrovaya Inc. today announced that it has delivered a 1.5MWh capacity Lithium Ion SuperPolymer(R) Battery Energy Storage System (“BESS”) to Arizona Public Service Company, that state’s largest electric utility. The BESS will be providing energy storage for a pilot program to…
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is seeking public comment on a proposal that would benefit the wholesale gas market by updating and improving standards for business practices of interstate natural gas pipelines. FERC today issued a proposed rule that would amend its regulations to incorporate by reference, with certain…
Secretary Chu Tours State of the Art CHP and District Energy System Serving Texas Medical Center in Houston Houston, Texas (PRWEB) February 3, 2012 – Energy Secretary Steven Chu is traveling across the country to highlight President Obama’s State of the Union address and affirm the Obama Administration’s commitment to…
First Commercial SunPower C7 Tracker Installation MESA, Ariz.– Salt River Project (SRP), Arizona State University (ASU) and SunPower Corp. (NASDAQ: SPWR) today announced an agreement to build a 1-megawatt solar photovoltaic power plant at ASU’s Polytechnic campus in Mesa, Ariz. The 1-megawatt facility will be the first commercial deployment of…
