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FERC Issues Letter Order Accepting TransAlta Sellers' 12/31/13 Filing of the Updated Market Power Analysis in Compliance with Order No. 697 and...(Targeted News Service Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) FERC Issues Letter Order Accepting TransAlta Sellers' 12/31/13 Filing of the Updated Market Power Analysis in Compliance with Order No. 697 and Notice of Change in Status Under ER10-2847 et al WASHINGTON, June 13 -- The U.S. Department of Energy's Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued the text of the following delegated order: In Reply Refer To: Docket Nos. ER10-2847-001 ER10-2818-001 ER10-2806-001 ER10-1948-003 TransAlta Centralia Generation LLC TransAlta Energy Marketing Corporation TransAlta Energy Marketing (U.S.) Inc. TransAlta Wyoming Wind LLC (collectively, the TransAlta Sellers) June 13, 2014 Mr. Stephen Angle Attorney for the TransAlta Sellers Vinson & Elkins L.L.P. 2200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Suite 500 West Washington, D.C. 20037 Reference: Updated Market Power Analysis in Compliance with Order No. 697 and Notice of Change in Status Dear Mr. Angle: On December 31, 2013, as amended on March 27, 2014, you filed on behalf of the TransAlta Sellers an updated market power analysis for the Northwest region in compliance with the regional reporting schedule adopted in Order No. 697 and pursuant to the Commission's orders granting the TransAlta Sellers authority to sell electric energy and capacity at market-based rates. You also filed a notice of change in status stating that TransAlta Holdings U.S. Inc. acquired TransAlta Wyoming Wind LLC on December 20, 2013. Your filings were noticed on January 2, 2014, and March 28, 2014, with comments, protests or interventions due on or before March 3, 2014, and April 17, 2014. None was filed. Pursuant to the authority delegated to the Director, Division of Electric Power Regulation - West, under 18 C.F.R. section 375.307, your submittals filed in the referenced dockets are accepted for filing. You state that TransAlta Centralia Generation LLC owns and operates a 1,500 megawatt (MW) coal-fired generation facility and a 248 MW natural gas-fired generation facility located in Centralia, Washington within the Bonneville Power Administration (BPAT) balancing authority area. You further state that TransAlta Wyoming Wind owns and operates a 144 MW wind-powered generation facility located in Uinta County, Wyoming within the PacifiCorp - East (PACE) balancing authority area. Lastly, you state that TransAlta Energy Marketing Corporation and TransAlta Energy Marketing (U.S.) Inc. are power marketers that do not own any generation capacity. You represent that the output from the facility in the PACE balancing authority area is fully committed under a long-term contract. You add that the TransAlta Sellers are direct subsidiaries of TransAlta Holdings U.S. Inc. and are affiliated with an entity that owns a generation facility in the Arizona Public Service Company (APS) balancing authority area. You further add that the affiliated generation capacity in the APS balancing authority areas is fully committed under a long-term contract. You state that the TransAlta Sellers do not own or control, and are not affiliated with any entities that own or control, transmission facilities in any region in the United States, other than the limited transmission facilities necessary to interconnect generation to the grid. Further, you affirmatively state that the TransAlta Sellers have not erected barriers to entry and will not erect barriers to entry into the relevant markets. Market-Based Rate Authorization The Commission allows power sales at market-based rates if the seller and its affiliates do not have, or have adequately mitigated, horizontal and vertical market power. You state that the TransAlta Sellers rely on Sierra Pacific Power Company's recently accepted market power analysis to demonstrate that the TransAlta Sellers pass both the pivotal supplier and the wholesale market share screens for the BPAT balancing authority area. You further state that the TransAlta Sellers rely on PacifiCorp's recently filed market power analysis to demonstrate that the TransAlta Sellers pass both the pivotal supplier and the wholesale market share screens for the PACE balancing authority area, when the Commission-accepted Simultaneous Transmission Import Limit (SIL) study results are taken into consideration for the PACE balancing authority area. Accordingly, based on your representations and subject to the Commission's determinations in PacifiCorp's pending proceeding, the TransAlta Sellers' submittals satisfy the Commission's requirements for market-based rate authority regarding horizontal market power when the Commission-accepted SIL values for the PACE balancing authority area are applied. Based on your representations, the TransAlta Sellers' submittals also satisfy the Commission's requirements for market-based rate authority regarding vertical market power. The TransAlta Sellers must file electronically with the Commission Electric Quarterly Reports. The TransAlta Sellers further must timely report to the Commission any change in status that would reflect a departure from the characteristics the Commission relied upon in granting market-based rate authority in accordance with Order No. 697. This action does not constitute approval of any service, rate, charge, classification, or any rule, regulation, or practice affecting such rate or service provided for in the filed documents; nor shall such action be deemed as recognition of any claimed contractual right or obligation affecting or relating to such service or rate; and such acceptance is without prejudice to any findings or orders which have been or may hereafter be made by the Commission in any proceeding now pending or hereafter instituted by or against any of the applicant(s). This order constitutes final agency action. Requests for rehearing by the Commission may be filed within 30 days of the date of issuance of this order, pursuant to 18 C.F.R section 385.713. Questions regarding the above order should be directed to: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Attn: Melissa Lozano Phone: (202) 502-6267 Office of Energy Market Regulation 888 First Street, N.E. Washington, D.C. 20426 Sincerely, Steve P. Rodgers, Director Division of Electric Power Regulation - West TNS 18EstebanLiz-140614-30FurigayJane-4767242 30FurigayJane (c) 2014 Targeted News Service |