Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 168 / Thursday, August 31, 2023 / Notices 60201 

Filed Date: 8/25/23. 

Accession Number: 20230825–5047. 

Comment Date: 5 p.m. ET 9/15/23. 

Docket Numbers: ER23–2704–000. 

Applicants: MRP Rocky Road LLC. 

Description: Initial rate filing: MRP 

Rocky Road LLC Initial Reactive Rate 

Schedule to be effective 8/25/2023. 

Filed Date: 8/25/23. 

Accession Number: 20230825–5048. 

Comment Date: 5 p.m. ET 9/15/23. 

Docket Numbers: ER23–2705–000. 

Applicants: Tri-State Generation and 

Transmission Association, Inc. 

Description: § 205(d) Rate Filing: 

Initial Filing of Rate Schedule FERC No. 

358 to be effective 7/26/2023. 

Filed Date: 8/25/23. 

Accession Number: 20230825–5075. 

Comment Date: 5 p.m. ET 9/15/23. 

Docket Numbers: ER23–2706–000. 

Applicants: Tri-State Generation and 

Transmission Association, Inc. 

Description: § 205(d) Rate Filing: 

Amendment to Rate Schedule FERC No. 

39 to be effective 10/24/2023. 

Filed Date: 8/25/23. 

Accession Number: 20230825–5085. 

Comment Date: 5 p.m. ET 9/15/23. 

Docket Numbers: ER23–2707–000. 

Applicants: Midcontinent 

Independent System Operator, Inc. 

Description: § 205(d) Rate Filing: 

2023–08–25_Tariff Sheet Consolidation 

True-Up Filing to be effective 6/1/2021. 

Filed Date: 8/25/23. 

Accession Number: 20230825–5091. 

Comment Date: 5 p.m. ET 9/15/23. 

Docket Numbers: ER23–2710–000. 

Applicants: Mid-Atlantic Interstate 

Transmission, LLC, PJM 

Interconnection, L.L.C. 

Description: § 205(d) Rate Filing: MidAtlantic Interstate Transmission, LLC 

submits tariff filing per 35.13(a)(2)(iii: 

MAIT submits one Construction 

Agreement, SA No. 6624 to be effective 

10/25/2023. 

Filed Date: 8/25/23. 

Accession Number: 20230825–5149. 

Comment Date: 5 p.m. ET 9/15/23. 

Take notice that the Commission 

received the following electric 

reliability filings: 

Docket Numbers: RR23–3–000. 

Applicants: North American Electric 

Reliability Corporation. 

Description: Request of North 

American Electric Reliability 

Corporation for Acceptance of 2024 

Business Plans and Budgets of NERC 

and Regional Entities and for Approval 

of Proposed Assessments to Fund 

Budgets. 

Filed Date: 8/24/23. 

Accession Number: 20230824–5178. 

Comment Date: 5 p.m. ET 9/14/23. 

The filings are accessible in the 

Commission’s eLibrary system (https://

elibrary.ferc.gov/idmws/search/ 

fercgensearch.asp) by querying the 

docket number. 

Any person desiring to intervene, to 

protest, or to answer a complaint in any 

of the above proceedings must file in 

accordance with Rules 211, 214, or 206 

of the Commission’s Regulations (18 

CFR 385.211, 385.214, or 385.206) on or 

before 5:00 p.m. Eastern time on the 

specified comment date. Protests may be 

considered, but intervention is 

necessary to become a party to the 

proceeding. 

eFiling is encouraged. More detailed 

information relating to filing 

requirements, interventions, protests, 

service, and qualifying facilities filings 

can be found at: http://www.ferc.gov/ 

docs-filing/efiling/filing-req.pdf. For 

other information, call (866) 208–3676 

(toll free). For TTY, call (202) 502–8659. 

The Commission’s Office of Public 

Participation (OPP) supports meaningful 

public engagement and participation in 

Commission proceedings. OPP can help 

members of the public, including 

landowners, environmental justice 

communities, Tribal members and 

others, access publicly available 

information and navigate Commission 

processes. For public inquiries and 

assistance with making filings such as 

interventions, comments, or requests for 

rehearing, the public is encouraged to 

contact OPP at (202) 502–6595 or OPP@

ferc.gov. 

Dated: August 25, 2023. 

Kimberly D. Bose, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2023–18867 Filed 8–30–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6717–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission 

[Project No. 2610–012; Project No. 2587– 

066] 

Northern States Power Company; 

Notice of Scoping Meetings and 

Environmental Site Reviews and 

Soliciting Scoping Comments 

Take notice that the following 

hydroelectric applications have been 

filed with the Commission and are 

available for public inspection. 

a. Type of Applications: Subsequent 

Minor (P–2610–012), New Major 

License (P–2587–066). 

b. Project Nos.: P–2610–012 and P– 

2587–066. 

c. Date Filed: December 30, 2022. 

d. Applicant: Northern States Power 

Company, a Wisconsin Corporation. 

e. Names of Projects: Saxon Falls 

Hydroelectric Project (Saxon Project) 

and Superior Falls Hydroelectric Project 

(Superior Project). 

f. Location: The projects are located 

on the Montreal River in Gogebic 

County, Michigan and Iron County, 

Wisconsin near the cities of Ironwood, 

Michigan and Hurley, Wisconsin. 

g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power 

Act 16 U.S.C. 791(a)–825(r). 

h. Applicant Contact: Matthew Miller, 

Hydro License Consultant, Northern 

States Power Company, 1414 West 

Hamilton Avenue, P.O. Box 8, Eau 

Claire, Wisconsin 54702–0008; 

telephone at (715) 737–1353 or email at 

matthew.j.miller@xcelenergy.com. 

i. FERC Contact: Nicholas Ettema, 

telephone at (312) 596–4447; or email at 

nicholas.ettema@ferc.gov. 

j. Deadline for filing scoping 

comments: October 28, 2023. 

The Commission strongly encourages 

electronic filing. Please file scoping 

comments using the Commission’s 

eFiling system at https://

ferconline.ferc.gov/FERCOnline.aspx. 

Commenters can submit brief comments 

up to 6,000 characters, without prior 

registration, using the eComment system 

at https://ferconline.ferc.gov/ 

QuickComment.aspx. You must include 

your name and contact information at 

the end of your comments. For 

assistance, please contact FERC Online 

Support at FERCOnlineSupport@

ferc.gov, (866) 208–3676 (toll free), or 

(202) 502–8659 (TTY). In lieu of 

electronic filing, you may submit a 

paper copy. Submissions sent via the 

U.S. Postal Service must be addressed 

to: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal 

Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 

First Street NE, Room 1A, Washington, 

DC 20426. Submissions sent via any 

other carrier must be addressed to: 

Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal 

Energy Regulatory Commission, 12225 

Wilkins Avenue, Rockville, MD 20852. 

All filings must clearly identify the 

following on the first page: Saxon 

Project No. 2610–012, and/or Superior 

Project No. 2587–066. 

The Commission’s Rules of Practice 

and Procedure require all interveners 

filing documents with the Commission 

to serve a copy of that document on 

each person on the official service list 

for the project. Further, if an intervener 

files comments or documents with the 

Commission relating to the merits of an 

issue that may affect the responsibilities 

of a particular resource agency, they 

must also serve a copy of the document 

on that resource agency. 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
60202 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 168 / Thursday, August 31, 2023 / Notices 

k. The applications are not ready for 

environmental analysis at this time. 

l. Project Descriptions: 

Saxon Project 

The Saxon Project consists of an 

Ambursen-type buttress concrete dam 

that includes: (1) a 250-foot-long nonoverflow earthen embankment; (2) a 57- 

foot-long non-overflow concrete section; 

(3) a 31-foot-long non-overflow concrete 

section with a 19-foot-long, 36.6-foothigh intake structure equipped with a 

flap gate and a trashrack with 1-inch 

clear bar spacing; (4) a 30-foot-long 

concrete section with a 13-foot-high 

steel Tainter gate; (5) a 127-foot-long 

spillway section with a crest elevation 

of 997.0 feet National Geodetic Vertical 

Dam of 1929 (NGVD 29); and (6) a 23.5- 

foot-long north abutment section. 

The Saxon Project’s dam creates an 

impoundment with a surface area of 

approximately 70 acres at an elevation 

of 997.0 feet NGVD 29. From the 

impoundment, water flows through the 

intake structure to a 1,607-foot-long 

steel conduit, a surge tank, and two steel 

penstocks. From the penstocks, water is 

conveyed to a powerhouse that contains 

two 750-kilowatt (kW) horizontal 

turbine-generator units, for a total 

installed capacity of 1,500 kW. Water is 

discharged from the powerhouse 

directly to the Montreal River. The 

Saxon Project creates an approximately 

2,400-foot-long bypassed reach of the 

Montreal River. A minimum flow pipe 

extends from the 31-foot-long nonoverflow section of the dam to provide 

flow to the bypassed reach. 

Electricity generated at the 

powerhouse is transmitted to the 

electric grid via an approximately 1,000- 

foot-long, 2.4-kilovolt (kV) overhead 

transmission line, a 2.4/34.5-kV step-up 

transformer, and a 12-mile-long, 34.5-kV 

transmission line. 

Project recreation facilities include: 

(1) a canoe take-out site, boat ramp, and 

parking area on the southern shore of 

the impoundment; and (2) a tailwater 

access site and parking area on the 

southern shoreline of the Montreal 

River, opposite of the powerhouse. 

Northern States Power operates the 

project in run-of-river mode, such that 

project outflow approximates inflow to 

the impoundment. The current license 

requires Northern States Power to: (1) 

minimize fluctuations of the 

impoundment surface elevation; (2) 

maintain a minimum impoundment 

elevation of 997.0 feet NGVD 29 from 

ice-out through June 1 each year; and (3) 

from June 2 through ice-out, maintain 

an impoundment elevation between a 

minimum of 996.5 and a maximum of 

997.0 feet NGVD 29. The current license 

also requires Northern States Power to 

release a minimum flow of 5 cubic feet 

per second (cfs) or inflow, whichever is 

less, to the bypassed reach from ice-out 

through October 31 (ice-free season) 

each year, to protect aquatic and 

aesthetic resources. The average annual 

energy production of the Saxon Project 

from 2017 through 2021 was 10,015.3 

MWh. 

Northern States Power proposes to 

revise the Saxon Project boundary 

around the impoundment to follow a 

contour elevation of 997.0 feet NGVD 

29, which would result in a reduction 

in the total acreage of the project 

boundary upstream of the project dam, 

from 159 acres to 71.7 acres. 

Additionally, Northern States Power 

proposes to add 2.7 acres of land to the 

project boundary near the dam and 

remove 20 acres of land from the project 

boundary along the bypassed reach and 

river downstream of the powerhouse. 

Northern States Power proposes to 

continue operating the Saxon Project in 

run-of-river mode and maintain water 

surface elevations as described above 

with the exception of the maximum 

impoundment elevation of the Saxon 

Project from June 2 through ice-out. In 

addition, Northern States Power 

proposes to release a minimum aesthetic 

flow of 5 cfs or inflow, whichever is 

less, from the Saturday before Memorial 

Day to October 15, except on weekends 

and holidays, when a minimum 

aesthetic flow of 10 cfs or inflow, 

whichever is less, would be released 

from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. 

Superior Project 

The Superior Project consists of an 

Ambursen-type buttress concrete dam 

that includes: (1) a west abutment 

section; (2) a 45-foot-long section with 

a 41.4-foot-long west spillway; (3) a 22- 

foot-long section with a west steel 

Tainter gate; (4) an 18.6-foot-long 

section with an 11.5-foot-long east ogee 

spillway section with a crest elevation 

of 740.2 feet NGVD 29, and two sluice 

gates; (5) a 40.5-foot-long section with 

two 16-foot-long, 18-foot-high east steel 

Tainter gates; (6) a 70-foot-long nonoverflow section with a 23-foot-long, 

29.25-foot-high intake structure 

equipped with a timber headgate and a 

trashrack with 1-inch clear bar spacing; 

and (7) an east abutment section. 

The Superior Project’s dam creates an 

impoundment with a surface area of 

16.3 acres at an elevation of 740.2 feet 

NGVD 29. From the impoundment, 

water flows through the intake structure 

to a 7-foot-diameter, 1,697-foot-long 

concrete conduit, a 28-foot-diameter, 41- 

foot-high concrete and steel surge tank, 

and two 4.5-foot-diameter, 207-foot-long 

steel penstocks. From the penstocks, 

water is conveyed to a 32-foot-long, 62- 

foot-wide concrete powerhouse that 

contains two 825-kW horizontal Francis 

turbine-generator units, for a total 

installed capacity of 1,650 kW. Water is 

discharged from the powerhouse to an 

approximately 80-foot-long, 55-footwide tailrace. The Superior Project 

creates an approximately 1,900-footlong bypassed reach of the Montreal 

River. 

Electricity generated at the 

powerhouse is transmitted to the 

electric grid via a 200-foot-long, 2.4-kV 

overhead transmission line and a 2.4/ 

34.5-kV step-up transformer located in a 

substation approximately 150 feet west 

of the powerhouse. 

Recreation facilities at the Superior 

Project include: (1) a canoe take-out site 

and an associated 5-vehicle parking area 

on the western shoreline of the 

impoundment, approximately 1,050 feet 

upstream of the dam; (2) a scenic 

overlook site on the eastern shoreline of 

the bypassed reach, approximately 480 

feet upstream of the tailrace; (3) a 

fishing area on the eastern shoreline of 

the tailrace; and (4) a parking area and 

access trails for the scenic overlook and 

fishing area. 

Northern States Power proposes to 

reduce the total acreage of the project 

boundary upstream of the project dam 

from 296.4 acres to 22.2 acres. 

Additionally, Northern States Power 

proposes to add 3.9 acres of land near 

the powerhouse to the project boundary, 

remove 35 acres of land east of State 

Highway 122, and remove 11.1 acres of 

land along the bypassed reach. 

Northern States Power proposes to 

continue operating the Superior Project 

in run-of-river mode and maintain water 

surface elevations and minimum flows 

as described above. 

m. Copies of the applications can be 

viewed on the Commission’s website at 

https://www.ferc.gov using the 

‘‘eLibrary’’ link. Enter the project’s 

docket number excluding the last three 

digits in the docket number field to 

access the document. For assistance, 

contact FERC Online Support. 

You may also register at https://

ferconline.ferc.gov/FERCOnline.aspx to 

be notified via email of new filings and 

issuances related to this or other 

pending projects. For assistance, please 

contact FERC Online Support at 

FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov. 

The Commission’s Office of Public 

Participation (OPP) supports meaningful 

public engagement and participation in 

Commission proceedings. OPP can help 

members of the public, including 

landowners, environmental justice 

communities, Tribal members and 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 168 / Thursday, August 31, 2023 / Notices 60203 

1Order Confirming and Approving Rate Schedule 

on a Final Basis, FERC Docket No. EF22–4–000 

(2023). 

others, access publicly available 

information and navigate Commission 

processes. For public inquiries and 

assistance with making filings such as 

interventions, comments, or requests for 

rehearing, the public is encouraged to 

contact OPP at (202) 502–6595 or OPP@

ferc.gov. 

n. Scoping Process: Pursuant to the 

National Environmental Policy Act 

(NEPA), Commission staff intends to 

prepare either an environmental 

assessment (EA) or an environmental 

impact statement (EIS) (collectively 

referred to as the ‘‘NEPA document’’) 

that describes and evaluates the 

probable effects, including an 

assessment of the site-specific and 

cumulative effects, if any, of the 

proposed action and alternatives. The 

Commission’s scoping process will help 

determine the required level of analysis 

and satisfy the NEPA scoping 

requirements, irrespective of whether 

the Commission issues an EA or an EIS. 

Scoping Meetings 

Commission staff will hold two public 

scoping meetings for the projects to 

receive input on the scope of the 

environmental issues that should be 

analyzed in the NEPA document. An 

evening meeting will be held at 7:00 

p.m. on September 27, 2023, at the City 

Hall of Hurley, Wisconsin, and will 

focus on receiving input from the 

public. A daytime meeting will be held 

at 9:00 a.m. on September 28, 2023, at 

the same location, and will focus on the 

concerns of resource agencies, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), and 

Indian Tribes. We invite all interested 

agencies, Indian Tribes, nongovernmental organizations, and 

individuals to attend one or both of 

these meetings. The times and locations 

of these meetings are as follows: 

Evening Scoping Meeting 

Date: Wednesday, September 27, 2023 

Time: 7:00 p.m. (CDT) 

Place: City Hall of Hurley 

Address: 405 5th Avenue North, Hurley, 

WI 54534 

Daytime Scoping Meeting 

Date: Thursday, September 28, 2023 

Time: 9:00 a.m. (CDT) 

Place: City Hall of Hurley 

Address: 405 5th Avenue North, Hurley, 

WI 54534 

Copies of the Scoping Document 

(SD1) outlining the proposed project 

and subject areas to be addressed in the 

NEPA document were distributed to the 

parties on the Commission’s mailing 

list. Copies of the SD1 will be available 

at the scoping meeting or may be 

viewed on the web at http://

www.ferc.gov using the ‘‘eLibrary’’ link 

(see item m above). 

Environmental Site Reviews 

The applicant and Commission staff 

will conduct environmental site reviews 

of the projects. All interested 

individuals, agencies, Indian Tribes, 

and NGOs are invited to attend. All 

participants are responsible for their 

own transportation to the sites and 

during the site visits. Please RSVP via 

email to matthew.j.miller@

xcelenergy.com or notify Matthew 

Miller at 715–737–1353 on or before 

Friday, September 22, 2023, if you plan 

to attend the environmental site 

reviews. The times and locations of the 

environmental site reviews are as 

follows: 

Saxon Falls and Superior Falls 

Hydroelectric Projects 

Date: Wednesday, September 27, 2023 

Time: 10:00 a.m. (CDT) 

Place: Superior Falls Hydroelectric 

Project 

Participants will meet at the Superior 

Falls parking lot for the powerhouse of 

the Superior Project, which is located 

on Lake Superior Rd, immediately 

adjacent to the west side of Lake County 

Park (Latitude 46.56494/Longitude90.41523). Immediately following the 

site review at the Superior Project, 

participants will proceed to the Saxon 

Project. All participants are responsible 

for their own transportation and must 

wear sturdy, closed-toe shoes, or boots. 

Objectives 

At the scoping meetings, Commission 

staff will: (1) summarize the 

environmental issues tentatively 

identified for analysis in the NEPA 

document; (2) solicit from the meeting 

participants all available information, 

especially quantifiable data, on the 

resources at issue; (3) encourage 

statements from experts and the public 

on issues that should be analyzed in the 

NEPA document, including viewpoints 

in opposition to, or in support of, the 

staff’s preliminary views; (4) determine 

the resource issues to be addressed in 

the NEPA document; and (5) identify 

those issues that require a detailed 

analysis, as well as those issues that do 

not require a detailed analysis. 

Procedures 

The meetings are recorded by a 

stenographer and become part of the 

formal record of the Commission 

proceeding on the project. Individuals, 

NGOs, Indian Tribes, and agencies with 

environmental expertise and concerns 

are encouraged to attend the meeting 

and to assist the staff in defining and 

clarifying the issues to be addressed in 

the NEPA document. 

Dated: August 25, 2023. 

Kimberly D. Bose, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2023–18872 Filed 8–30–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6717–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

Western Area Power Administration 

Boulder Canyon Project 

AGENCY: Western Area Power 

Administration (WAPA), Department of 

Energy (DOE). 

ACTION: Notice concerning fiscal year 

(FY) 2024 base charge and rates for 

Boulder Canyon Project (BCP) electric 

service. 

SUMMARY: The Deputy Secretary 

confirms, approves, and places into 

effect on a final basis the Boulder 

Canyon Project base charge and rates for 

fiscal year 2024 under Rate Schedule 

BCP–F11. The base charge increased 

11.3 percent from $66.8 million in FY 

2023 to $74.3 million in FY 2024. The 

change is primarily the result of an 

increase in the Bureau of Reclamation’s 

(Reclamation) replacement costs, an 

increase in WAPA’s operations and 

maintenance (O&M) expenses and 

replacement costs, and a decrease in 

prior year carryover funds from FY 

2023. 

DATES: The FY 2024 base charge and 

rates are effective October 1, 2023, and 

will remain in effect through September 

30, 2024. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jack 

D. Murray, Regional Manager, Desert 

Southwest Region, Western Area Power 

Administration, P.O. Box 6457, 

Phoenix, AZ 85005–6457, or Tina 

Ramsey, Rates Manager, Desert 

Southwest Region, Western Area Power 

Administration, (602) 605–2565, or 

email: dswpwrmrk@wapa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On March 

31, 2023, the Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission (FERC) approved and 

confirmed Rate Schedule BCP–F11, 

under Rate Order No. WAPA–204, on a 

final basis through September 30, 2027.1

WAPA published a Federal Register 

notice (Proposed FRN) on April 18, 

2023 (88 FR 23669), proposing the FY 

2024 base charge and rates under Rate 

Schedule BCP–F11. The Proposed FRN 

also initiated a 90-day public 

consultation and comment period and 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1