Solicitation of Comments on the Form EIA-423

### September 8, 2003

### Purpose

The purpose of this note is to solicit your comments on the Form
EIA-423. The form is scheduled for reauthorization in 2004, and we are
currently reviewing the format of the form and the content of the data
collected on it. Your comments will be used by EIA during consideration
of any redesign for the Form EIA-423.

Your response is voluntary and any comments will be treated as
non-confidential. This information request is approved under OMB Number
1905-0186 and the response time is estimated to be 30 minutes.

This solicitation for comments precedes the formal reauthorization
process, which will include publication of a *Federal Register* notice
and approval of the form by the Office of Management and Budget. The
public will have a full opportunity for formal comments during the
reauthorization process in 2004. Any changes to the form would go into
effect in January 2005.

### Background

The Form EIA-423 collects data on the cost, volume and quality of fossil
fuel receipts at non-utility power plants. The form was first used to
collect data in 2002. The form is largely a duplicate of the FERC Form
423. However, there are some significant differences:

-   The EIA-423 collects data exclusively from non-utility generating
    plants. This includes both independent power producers and combined
    heat and power (cogeneration) plants. The FERC Form 423 is directed
    to utility power plants only.

-   The EIA-423 collects data on all types of fossil-fueled plants,
    including combustion turbines. In contrast, the FERC Form 423 is
    limited to steam electric and combined cycle plants.

-   Unlike the FERC Form 423, the EIA-423 does not collect the
    originating Bureau of Mines district for coal receipts.

-   The delivered price data on the Form EIA-423 are held permanently
    confidential. This is the only confidential item on the form.
    Delivered prices reported on the FERC Form 423 are public
    information.

### Issues for Comment

Comments on the following subjects would be appreciated:

**Confidentiality of Delivered Prices**: As noted above, the EIA-423
differs from the FERC Form 423 in that the delivered prices are held
permanently confidential at the facility level. Confidentiality issues
include:

-   Should the practice of holding the delivered prices confidential
    continue for the EIA-423?

-   As an alternative to the polar opposites of full disclosure and
    permanent confidentiality, should the EIA-423 delivered price data
    be held confidential for a limited period of time (e.g., six
    months)?

-   Should the confidentiality treatment of the delivered price data
    differ for independent power producers versus combined heat and
    power (cogeneration) plants whose primary business purpose is
    something other than the sale of electricity? If so, how should the
    treatments differ?

**Consistency in the Delivered Prices**: A concern with the Form EIA-423
delivered price data is that reporting between different companies may
be inconsistent; i.e., one firm may define delivered fuel costs
differently than another firm. The kinds of costs at issue include:

-   Contract buyout payments;

-   Railcar lease and maintenance expenses;

-   Fixed costs, such as demand charges for gas transportation; and

-   Prior period adjustments.

Your comments are requested on how to clearly define these costs and
whether these costs should be included or excluded from reported
delivered fuel prices.

**Breakout of Transportation and Commodity Costs**: The Form EIA-423
currently collects a single delivered cost for fuel receipts. In the
alternative, the form could collect the transportation cost and
commodity cost of the fuel as separate items rather than as a single
delivered cost. The potential advantages of this approach include:

-   The commodity cost data would provide the public with a reasonably
    current government source of data on market fuel prices. Currently,
    fuel price data are primarily available from proprietary sources,
    such as various newsletters that conduct their own surveys to
    estimate market prices.

-   Similar to commodity prices, there is currently no contemporaneous
    source of government information on transportation costs. This makes
    it difficult to determine the extent to which delivered fuel prices
    are being driven by changes in the commodity or transportation
    costs.

-   Studies of long-term trends and regional differences in fuel prices
    would be facilitated if the commodity and transportation costs could
    be clearly separated.

In contrast to these potential benefits, collecting additional
information could increase the burden on respondents.

-   A key question is therefore whether the value from the additional
    data would exceed the increase in burden.

Other questions include:

-   How should commodity and transportation costs be defined for coal,
    natural gas and petroleum fuels?

-   Confidentiality:

    -   Should the separate transportation and commodity costs be kept
        confidential at the facility level?

    -   Should the confidentiality treatment of the data vary by fuel or
        transportation mode?

    -   Should the confidentiality treatment of the data vary by the
        type of respondent (independent power producer vs. combined heat
        and power plants)?

    -   If the costs should be kept confidential at the facility level,
        would publication of the data as aggregates or indices still
        provide substantial value to users of the data?

-   Would the collection of transportation and fuel commodity cost data
    on the EIA-423 provide any material benefit to users of the data
    compared to the commodity and transportation data already collected
    on the FERC Form 580.

# General: other areas for comment include:

-   What other data items should be added or subtracted from the form?

-   Should the layout of the form be changed?

-   Any other comments you may have on the form.

### Where to Send Comments and Schedule

Your comments or questions can be directed to Stan Kaplan at
<stan.kaplan@eia.doe.gov> or at 202-287-1803 (written comments sent by
e-mail are preferred). Comments can also be sent by fax at 202-287-1934.
However, if you send comments by fax please call or e-mail to confirm
that the fax was received.

Comments would be most helpful if received by October 15, 2003, given
our schedule for reauthorizing the Form EIA-423.

### Reference Materials

A copy of the Form EIA-423 and instructions can be found at:
<http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/page/forms.html>

Current data files for the Form EIA-423 are available at:
<http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/page/data.html>

For information on the FERC Form 423, see:
<http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/eforms-elec.asp>

For information on the FERC Form 580, see:
<http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/hard-filing/form-580/overview.asp>