![](media/image1.jpeg){width="8.5in" height="3.5027777777777778in"}U.S.
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

**Office of Electricity and\
Energy Assurance**

**ENERGY ASSURANCE DAILY**

**March 10, 2005**

**Electricity**

**Avista Forecasts Summer Hydro Output at 80% of Normal**

Because of the warm dry winter in the Pacific Northwest Avista Utilities
anticipates that hydroelectric generation will fall well below normal
before the end of summer. Consequently, Avista will utilize other
resources to meet customer demand. Current forecasts are predicting
runoff levels below 50 percent of normal in the Spokane and Clark Fork
river drainages from April through September. Avista operates eight
hydroelectric projects with 980 megawatts of generating capability on
those two rivers. Avista currently estimates its hydro generation will
be approximately 80 percent of normal for the calendar year.\
Source: Avista Corp., March 10, 2005.

[***http://www.avistacorp.com/news/***](http://www.avistacorp.com/news/)

**Nine Mile Unit 1 Returns to Full Power**

Constellation Energy Group Inc.\'s 620 MW unit 1 at the Nine Mile Point
nuclear generating station in exited an outage and was operating at full
power by early Thursday. The Nine Mile Point facility is located in
Oswego County about 90 miles east of Rochester, New York.

Reuters 8:21, March 10, 2005.

**Nine Mile Point License Renewal on Hold**

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission, dissatisfied with materials submitted
by Constellation Energy in its effort to gain approval to extend the
operating license at its Nine Mile Point nuclear generating station, has
extended the review period at the request of Constellation.
Constellation is in the process of applying for a 20 year extension of
the operating licenses for both units 1 and 2 at the Nine Mile Point
facility. On March 3, Constellation requested a grace period of up to 90
days to enable the company to resolve the data quality issues. On March
7, the NRC notified Constellation that it had granted the request and
suspended the review process.

Platts March 9, 2005

<http://www.platts.com/Nuclear/headlines.jsp>

**The 493 MW gas-fired Redondo Unit 7 in California returned to Service
March 10.**

Reuters 14:38, March 10, 2005.

**Exelon Receives Favorable Report for Possible New Nuclear Plant**

On Tuesday, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued a draft
environmental impact statement that found no environmental reasons why
Exelon Generation Co. should not receive an early site permit for
building a new nuclear power plant at the proposed site in Clinton,
Illinois. The draft report is but one of many steps in the process that
could lead to granting a Federal site permit for the construction of a
new nuclear generating station at the Clinton site. The NRC is in the
process of reviewing safety and emergency planning and anticipates that
a decision will be forth coming by August 2006. A spokeswoman for Exelon
reports that no definitive action regarding construction has been taken
and believes the site permit \"would allow us to bank an option.\"

St Louis Post Dispatch, March 9, 2005.

<http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/illinoisstatenews/story/8BB83233CEDAA68686256FBF001A6419?OpenDocument&highlight=2%2Cexelon>

**International Power to Reactivate Mothballed 1,100MW Texas Power
Plant**

International Power will reactivate the 1,100 MW Hays gas-fired power
plant in Texas. The restart is scheduled for May; the plant was
mothballed in January of 2004.

Reuters, 14:38, March 10, 2005.

**Petroleum**

**Traders See Brent North Sea Output to Increase for April**

According to oil traders, output of North Sea Brent crude oil will load
at an average of 276,000 barrels per day in April, compared to an
average of 190,000 bpd in March.

Reuters 5:28, March 10, 2005.

**Shell\'s North Sea Platform Remains Closed**

Following the discovery of leaking condensate on March 4, Royal
Dutch/Shell's platform in the Draugen oilfield in the North Sea was
closed. On Wednesday, Shell announced that the platform would remain
closed until at least Friday March 11. The platform, with daily
production of 120,000 b/d) is the only offshore platform operating in
the Draugen field.

<http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1540&ncid=1540&e=13&u=/afp/20050309/sc_afp/norwayenergyoilproductionenvironmentcompanyshell_050309145045>

**Natural Gas**

Nothing to Report

**Other News**

Nothing to Report

**Energy Prices**

+-------------------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+
|                               | **Latest  | **Week    | **Year     |
|                               | (03       | Ago**     | Ago**      |
|                               | /10/05)** |           |            |
+-------------------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+
| **CRUDE OIL**                 | 53.53     | 53.60     | 36.95      |
|                               |           |           |            |
| **West Texas Intermediate     |           |           |            |
| US**                          |           |           |            |
|                               |           |           |            |
| \$/Barrel                     |           |           |            |
+-------------------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+
| **NATURAL GAS**               | 6.91      | 6.71      | 5.33       |
|                               |           |           |            |
| **Henry Hub**                 |           |           |            |
|                               |           |           |            |
| \$/Million Btu                |           |           |            |
+-------------------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+

> Source: Reuters

**This Week in Petroleum** from the Energy Information Administration
(EIA)

[*http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/oog/info/twip/twip.asp*](http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/oog/info/twip/twip.asp)

Updated on Wednesdays

**Weekly Petroleum Status Report** from EIA**\
**[*http://www.eia.doe.gov/oil_gas/petroleum/data_publications/weekly_petroleum_status_report/wpsr.html*](http://www.eia.doe.gov/oil_gas/petroleum/data_publications/weekly_petroleum_status_report/wpsr.html)

Updated after 1:00pm (Eastern time) on Wednesdays

**Natural Gas Weekly Update** from EIA

[*http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/oog/info/ngw/ngupdate.asp*](http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/oog/info/ngw/ngupdate.asp)

Updated after 2:00 pm (Eastern time) on Thursdays

**ENSEC threat awareness blog site** from Energy Assurance

[*http://ensec.blogspot.com*](http://ensec.blogspot.com/)