Electric Co-op Today

In a pair of sharply worded filings, electric cooperatives and consumer-owned utilities say federal regulators overstepped their authority in a major clean energy case in the Northwest, and want them to reconsider their ruling.

FERC is being asked to reconsider an order affecting the balance of wind and hydroelectric generation in the Northwest. (Photo By: Bonneville Power Administration)

NRECA said the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission exceeded its authority by ordering Bonneville Power Administration to rewrite a policy that curtails other generation resources, including some wind, at times of high hydropower production.

Instead, the 40-page NRECA filing said federal law gives exclusive jurisdiction over final BPA actions to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit.

“The Commission does not have the authority… to intrude upon this jurisdiction, regardless of whether the Commission’s actions are prospective or retroactive,” NRECA said.

Additionally, PNGC Power, a G&T in Portland, Ore., along with the Public Power Council and Northwest Requirements Utilities, which represent co-ops, municipal systems and consumer-owned utilities, asked FERC to rehear the case.

“The December 7 Order is arbitrary, capricious, not the product of reasoned decision making and not supported by substantial evidence,” they said in a separate filing.

The clash between high wind and high water has huge implications for Northwest ratepayers, grid reliability and the region’s $800 million annual investment in salmon recovery and wildlife.

BPA announced the environmental redispatch policy last spring during a period of peak snowpack runoff into the Columbia River Basin. It first limits fossil-fuel generation, and then wind generation, to balance supply and demand, and maintain a proper flow of water for endangered salmon species.

Wind generators said brief shutdowns in May and June cost them money in lost tax breaks and revenue from renewable energy credits. On December 7, FERC agreed with wind companies that the redispatch policy discriminated against them.

NRECA said that because the policy affects only the scheduling and dispatch of generation resources―not transmission―FERC exceeded its statutory authority.

The FERC order could, without authority under the Federal Power Act, require BPA to pay wind resources to reduce output to maintain reliability, the association said. That could increase costs for BPA preference customers.

“However, the Commission cannot order BPA to adopt any of these remedies because none of the remedies constitute transmission service, and therefore the Commission cannot order BPA to implement them,” NRECA said.

PNGC, the Public Power Council and Northwest Requirements Utilities added that the order did not take into account BPA’s need to comply with environmental laws like the Clean Water Act and the Endangered Species Act. These laws preclude excess spills of water over dams, which create dangerous conditions for fish.

“Specifically, the Commission’s analysis is flawed because it ignores that in certain overgeneration or low load conditions … federal hydroelectric generation is ‘environmental must-run’ generation,” they said.

They told FERC that it should allow parties in the case to work out a regional solution to issues related to hydro and wind production.

BPA added that its needs clarification soon, because the start of the spring runoff is just weeks away.

“While BPA is meeting a regulatory deadline to respond to ongoing litigation, we continue to believe that a solution developed in the Northwest by regional parties is the best path forward,” said BPA Administrator Steve Wright.

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Tags: Bonneville Power Administration, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Hydroelectric Power, Wind Energy