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###### Department of Energy

###### Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 

          - [Project No. 12635-002] 

Take notice that the following hydroelectric application has been filed with the Commission and is available for public inspection. 

                    a.                     *Type of Application:*                     Original Major License.                 

                    b.                     *Project No.:*                     12635-002.                 

                    c.                     *Date filed:*                     February 13, 2015 .                

                    d.                     *Applicant:*                     Moriah Hydro Corporation.                

                    e.                     *Name of Project:*                     Mineville Energy Storage Project.                 

                    f.                     *Location:*                     The project would be located in an abandoned subterranean mine complex [1]                                          in the town of Moriah, Essex County, New York. No federal lands are occupied by project works or located within the project boundary.                 

                    g.                     *Filed Pursuant to:*                     Federal Power Act 16 U.S.C. 791(a)-825(r).                 

                    h.                     *Applicant Contact:*                     James A. Besha, P.E., President, Moriah Hydro Corporation, 5 Washington Square, Albany, NY 12205; or at (518) 456-7712.                 

                    i.                     *FERC Contact:*                     John Mudre, (202) 502-8902 or                     *john.mudre@ferc.gov.*

                    j.                     *Cooperating agencies:*                     Federal, state, local, and tribal agencies with jurisdiction and/or special expertise with respect to environmental issues that wish to cooperate in the preparation of the environmental document should follow the instructions for filing such requests described in item l below. Cooperating agencies should note the Commission's policy that agencies that cooperate in the preparation of the environmental document cannot also intervene.                     *See,*                     94 FERC ¶ 61,076 (2001).                 

k. Pursuant to section 4.32(b)(7) of 18 CFR of the Commission's regulations, if any resource agency, Indian Tribe, or person believes that an additional scientific study should be conducted in order to form an adequate factual basis for a complete analysis of the application on its merit, the resource agency, Indian Tribe, or person must file a request for a study with the Commission not later than 60 days from the date of filing of the application, and serve a copy of the request on the applicant. 

                    l.                     *Deadline for filing additional study requests and requests for cooperating agency status:*                     April 14, 2015.                 

                    The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing. Please file additional study requests                    **                     and requests for cooperating agency status using the Commission's eFiling system at                     *http://www.ferc.gov/​docs-filing/​efiling.asp.*                     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, please send a paper copy to: Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE., Washington, DC 20426. The first page of any filing should include docket number P-12635-002.                 

m. The application is not ready for environmental analysis at this time. 

                    n. The proposed project consists of: (1) An upper reservoir located within the upper portion of the mine between elevations 495 and 1,095 feet above mean sea level (msl), with a surface area of 4 acres and a storage capacity of 2,448 acre-feet; (2) a lower reservoir in the lower portion of the mine between elevations -1,075 and -1,555 feet msl, with a surface area of 5.1 acres and a storage capacity of 2,448 acre-feet; (3) a 14-foot-diameter and 2,955-foot-long upper reservoir shaft connecting the upper reservoir to the high-pressure penstock located below the powerhouse chamber floor; (4) a 14-foot-diameter and 2,955-foot-long lower reservoir shaft connecting the lower reservoir and the lower reservoir ventilation tunnel; (5) two 6-foot-diameter emergency evacuation shafts located between the powerhouse chamber and the electrical equipment chamber; (6) a 25-foot-diameter main shaft extending 2,955 feet from the surface down to the powerhouse chamber; (7) 15-foot-diameter high- and low-pressure steel penstocks embedded beneath the powerhouse chamber floor; (8) a 320-foot-long by 80-foot-wide powerhouse chamber, containing 100 reversible pump-turbine units, each with a nameplate generating capacity of 2.4 megawatts; (9) a 274-foot-long by 36-foot-wide underground electrical equipment chamber adjacent to the powerhouse chamber; (10) an inclined electrical tunnel connecting the electrical equipment chamber to a new 115-kilovolt (kV) substation constructed adjacent to an existing single circuit 115-kV transmission line located about one horizontal mile from the underground powerhouse chamber; and (11) appurtenant facilities. The project would operate as a closed-loop system to meet energy demands and grid control requirements. The project would                           ( print page 12163)                        have an average annual generation of 421 gigawatt-hours (GWh). The average pumping power used by the project would be 554 GWh.                 

                    o. A copy of the application is available for review at the Commission in the Public Reference Room or may be viewed on the Commission's Web site at                     *http://www.ferc.gov*                     using the “eLibrary” link. Enter the docket number excluding the last three digits in the docket number field to access the document. For assistance, contact FERC Online Support. A copy is also available for inspection and reproduction at the address in item h above.                 

                    You may also register online at                     *http://www.ferc.gov/​docs-filing/​esubscription.asp*                     to be notified via email of new filings and issuances related to this or other pending projects. For assistance, contact FERC Online Support.                 

                    p.                     *Procedural schedule:*                     The application will be processed according to the following preliminary Hydro Licensing Schedule. Revisions to the schedule will be made as appropriate.                 

Issue Notice of Acceptance or Deficiency April 2015 

Request Additional Information April 2015 

Issue Acceptance Letter July 2015 

Issue Scoping Document 1 for comments August 2015 

Comments on Scoping Document 1 September 2015 

Issue Scoping Document 2 October 2015 

Issue notice of ready for environmental analysis October 2015 

Commission issues EA, draft EA, or draft EIS April 2016 

Comments on EA, draft EA, or draft EIS June 2016 

Commission issues final EA or final EIS August 2016 

Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr., 

Deputy Secretary.

# Footnotes

1.                             The existing mine complex is composed of the interconnected Old Bed, Bonanza open pit, and Harmony mines.                    
        Back to Citation      

[FR Doc. 2015-05251 Filed 3-5-15; 8:45 am] 

 BILLING CODE 6717-01-P