Document ID: FERC-2020-0132-0001
Agency: ferc
Document Type: Notice
Title: Order on Intent to Revoke Market-Based Rate Authority: Electric Quarterly Reports; Mint Energy, LLC; Westmoreland Partners; et al.
Posted Date: 2020-01-30T05:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 20 (Thursday, January 30, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5414-5415]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-01590]

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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

Order on Intent To Revoke Market-Based Rate Authority

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                                                   Docket Nos.
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Electric Quarterly Reports.............  ER02-2001-020
Mint Energy, LLC.......................  ER10-1110-000
Westmoreland Partners..................  ER10-2291-001
E-T Global Energy, LLC.................  ER11-2039-001
BBPC, LLC..............................  ER11-3028-002
Amerigreen Energy, Inc.................  ER11-3879-001
Mac Trading, Inc.......................  ER11-4447-000
Liberty Hill Power LLC.................  ER12-1202-001
Imperial Valley Solar Company (IVSC) 1,  ER12-1170-003
 LLC.
Lexington Power & Light, LLC...........  ER15-455-000
Clear Choice Energy, LLC...............  ER13-183-000
Energy Discounters, LLC................  ER14-663-001
Infinite Energy Corporation............  ER14-2421-000
North Energy Power, LLC................  ER15-626-000
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    1. Section 205 of the Federal Power Act (FPA), 16 U.S.C. 824d 
(2018), and 18 CFR part 35 (2019), require, among other things, that 
all rates, terms, and conditions for jurisdictional services be filed 
with the Commission. In Order No. 2001, the Commission revised its 
public utility filing requirements and established a requirement for 
public utilities, including power marketers, to file Electric Quarterly 
Reports.\1\
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    \1\ Revised Pub. Util. Filing Requirements, Order No. 2001, 99 
FERC ] 61,107, reh'g denied, Order No. 2001-A, 100 FERC ] 61,074, 
reh'g denied, Order No. 2001-B, 100 FERC ] 61,342, order directing 
filing, Order No. 2001-C, 101 FERC ] 61,314 (2002), order directing 
filing, Order No. 2001-D, 102 FERC ] 61,334, order refining filing 
requirements, Order No. 2001-E, 105 FERC ] 61,352 (2003), order on 
clarification, Order No. 2001-F, 106 FERC ] 61,060 (2004), order 
revising filing requirements, Order No. 2001-G, 120 FERC ] 61,270, 
order on reh'g and clarification, Order No. 2001-H, 121 FERC ] 
61,289 (2007), order revising filing requirements, Order No. 2001-I, 
125 FERC ] 61,103 (2008). See also Filing Requirements for Elec. 
Util. Serv. Agreements, 155 FERC ] 61,280, order on reh'g and 
clarification, 157 FERC ] 61,180 (2016) (clarifying Electric 
Quarterly Reports reporting requirements and updating Data 
Dictionary).
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    2. The Commission requires sellers with market-based rate 
authorization to file Electric Quarterly Reports summarizing 
contractual and transaction information related to their market-based 
power sales as a condition for retaining that authorization.\2\ 
Commission staff's review of the Electric Quarterly Reports indicates 
that the following thirteen public utilities with market-based rate 
authorization have failed to file their Electric Quarterly Reports: 
Mint Energy, LLC, Westmoreland Partners, E-T Global Energy, LLC, BBPC, 
LLC, Amerigreen Energy, Inc., Mac Trading, Inc., Liberty Hill Power 
LLC, Imperial Valley Solar Company (IVSC) 1, LLC, Lexington Power & 
Light, LLC, Clear Choice Energy, LLC, Energy Discounters, LLC, Infinite 
Energy Corporation, and North Energy Power, LLC. This order notifies 
these public utilities that their market-based rate authorizations will 
be revoked unless they comply with the Commission's requirements within 
fifteen days of the date of issuance of this order.
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    \2\ See Refinements to Policies and Procedures for Market-Based 
Rates for Wholesale Sales of Elect. Energy, Capacity and Ancillary 
Servs. by Public Utils., Order No. 816, 153 FERC ] 61,065 (2015), 
order on reh'g, Order No. 816-A, 155 FERC ] 61,188 (2016); Market-
Based Rates for Wholesale Sales of Elec. Energy, Capacity and 
Ancillary Servs. by Pub. Utils., Order No. 697, 119 FERC ] 61,295 
(2007), at P 3, clarified, 121 FERC ] 61,260 (2007), order on reh'g, 
Order No. 697-A, 123 FERC ] 61,055 (2008), clarified, 124 FERC ] 
61,055, order on reh'g, Order No. 697-B, 125 FERC ] 61,326 (2008), 
order on reh'g, Order No. 697-C, 127 FERC ] 61,284 (2009), order on 
reh'g, Order No. 697-D, 130 FERC ] 61,206 (2010), aff'd sub nom. 
Mont. Consumer Counsel v. FERC, 659 F.3d 910 (9th Cir. 2011).
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    3. In Order No. 2001, the Commission stated that,

[i]f a public utility fails to file a[n] Electric Quarterly Report 
(without an appropriate request for extension), or fails to report 
an agreement in a report, that public utility may forfeit its 
market-based rate authority and may be required to file a new 
application for market-based rate authority if it wishes to resume 
making sales at market-based rates.[\3\]
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    \3\ Order No. 2001, 99 FERC ] 61,107 at P 222.

    4. The Commission further stated that,
[o]nce this rule becomes effective, the requirement to comply with 
this rule will supersede the conditions in public utilities' market-
based rate authorizations, and failure to comply with the 
requirements of this rule will subject public utilities to the same 
consequences they would face for not satisfying the conditions in 
their rate authorizations, including possible revocation of their 
authority to make wholesale power sales at market-based rates.[\4\]
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    \4\ Id. P 223.

    5. Pursuant to these requirements, the Commission has revoked the 
market-based rate tariffs of market-based rate sellers that failed to 
submit their Electric Quarterly Reports.\5\
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    \5\ See, e.g., Elec. Quarterly Reports, 82 FR 60,976 (Dec. 26, 
2017); Elec. Quarterly Reports, 80 FR 58,243 (Sep. 28, 2015); Elec. 
Quarterly Reports, 79 FR 65,651 (Nov. 5, 2014).
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    6. Sellers must file Electric Quarterly Reports consistent with the 
procedures set forth in Order Nos. 2001, 768,\6\ and 770.\7\ The exact 
filing dates for Electric Quarterly Reports are prescribed in 18 CFR 
35.10b (2019). As noted above, Commission staff's review of the 
Electric Quarterly Reports for the period up to the third quarter of 
2019 identified thirteen public utilities with market-based rate 
authorization that failed to file Electric Quarterly Reports. 
Commission staff contacted or attempted to contact these entities to 
remind them of their regulatory obligations. Despite these reminders, 
the public utilities listed in the caption of this order have not met 
these obligations. Accordingly, this order notifies these public 
utilities that their market-based rate authorizations will be revoked 
unless they comply with the Commission's requirements within fifteen 
days of the issuance of this order.
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    \6\ Elec. Mkt. Transparency Provisions of Section 220 of the 
Fed. Power Act, Order No. 768, 140 FERC ] 61,232 (2012), order on 
reh'g, Order No. 768-A, 143 FERC ] 61,054 (2013), order on reh'g, 
Order No. 768-B, 150 FERC ] 61,075 (2015).
    \7\ See Revisions to Elec. Quarterly Report Filing Process, 
Order No. 770, 141 FERC ] 61,120 (2012).
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    7. In the event that any of the above-captioned market-based rate 
sellers has already filed its Electric Quarterly Reports in compliance 
with the Commission's requirements, its inclusion herein is 
inadvertent. Such market-based rate seller is directed, within fifteen 
days of the date of issuance of this order, to make a filing with the 
Commission identifying itself and providing details about its prior 
filings that establish that it complied with the Commission's Electric 
Quarterly Report filing requirements.

[[Page 5415]]

    8. If any of the above-captioned market-based rate sellers does not 
wish to continue having market-based rate authority, it may file a 
notice of cancellation with the Commission pursuant to section 205 of 
the FPA to cancel its market-based rate tariff.
    The Commission orders:
    (A) Within fifteen days of the date of issuance of this order, each 
public utility listed in the caption of this order shall file with the 
Commission all delinquent Electric Quarterly Reports. If a public 
utility subject to this order fails to make the filings required in 
this order, the Commission will revoke that public utility's market-
based rate authorization and will terminate its electric market-based 
rate tariff. The Secretary is hereby directed, upon expiration of the 
filing deadline in this order, to promptly issue a notice, effective on 
the date of issuance, listing the public utilities whose tariffs have 
been revoked for failure to comply with the requirements of this order 
and the Commission's Electric Quarterly Report filing requirements.
    (B) The Secretary is hereby directed to publish this order in the 
Federal Register.

    By the Commission.

    Issued: January 23, 2020.
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2020-01590 Filed 1-29-20; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6717-01-P