[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 184 (Thursday, September 22, 2011)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 58741-58747]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-24166]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
18 CFR Part 284
[Docket No. RM11-4-000]
Storage Reporting Requirements of Interstate and Intrastate
Natural Gas Companies
AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.
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SUMMARY: The Commission proposes to eliminate the semi-annual storage
reporting requirements for Interstate and Intrastate Natural Gas
Companies that are currently codified in our regulations. The
Commission finds that the reports now proposed for elimination are
largely duplicative with other reporting requirements.
DATES: Comments are due November 21, 2011.
ADDRESSES: Comments, identified by docket number, may be filed in the
following methods:
Electronic Filing through http://www.ferc.gov. Documents
created electronically using word processing software should be filed
in native applications or print-to-PDF format and not in a scanned
format.
Mail/Hand Delivery: Those unable to file electronically
may mail or hand-deliver an original of their comments to: Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission, Secretary of the Commission, 888 First
Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426.
Instructions: For detailed instructions on submitting comments and
additional information on the rulemaking process, see the Comment
Procedures Section of this document.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Vince Mareino (Legal Information),
Office of the General Counsel, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission,
888 First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426, (202) 502-6167,
[email protected].
Thomas Russo (Technical Information), Office of Enforcement,
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street, NE.,
Washington, DC 20426, (202) 502-8792, [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Table of Contents
Paragraph
Nos.
I. Background............................................... 2
A. Current Regulations.................................. 2
B. Notice of Inquiry.................................... 7
C. Comments to the Notice of Inquiry.................... 9
D. Executive Orders..................................... 11
II. Discussion.............................................. 13
A. Interstate Storage Reports........................... 14
B. Intrastate and Hinshaw Storage Reports............... 24
III. Regulatory Requirements................................ 29
A. Information Collection Statement..................... 29
B. Environmental Analysis............................... 34
C. Regulatory Flexibility Act [Analysis Or 35
Certification].........................................
D. Comment Procedures................................... 36
E. Document Availability................................ 40
September 15, 2011.
1. The Commission proposes to eliminate the semi-annual storage
reporting requirements for: (1) Interstate natural gas companies
subject to the Commission's jurisdiction under the Natural Gas Act
(NGA), as codified in 18 CFR 284.13(e); (2) intrastate pipelines
providing interstate services pursuant to section 311 of the Natural
Gas Policy Act of 1978 (NGPA),\1\ as codified in 18 CFR 284.126(c); and
(3) Hinshaw \2\ pipelines providing interstate services subject to the
Commission's Natural Gas Act (NGA) jurisdiction pursuant to blanket
certificates issued under Sec. 284.224 of the Commission's
regulations, as also codified in 18 CFR
[[Page 58742]]
284.126(c). The Commission finds that the reports now proposed for
elimination are largely duplicative with other reporting requirements.
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\1\ 15 U.S.C. 3372.
\2\ Section 1(c) of the NGA exempts from the Commission's NGA
jurisdiction pipelines which transport gas in interstate commerce if
(1) They receive natural gas at or within the boundary of a state,
(2) all the gas is consumed within that state, and (3) the pipeline
is regulated by a state Commission. This exemption is referred to as
the Hinshaw exemption after the Congressman who introduced the bill
amending the NGA to include Sec. 1(c). See ANR Pipeline Co. v.
Federal Energy Regulatory Comm'n, 71 F.3d 897, 898 (1995) (briefly
summarizing the history of the Hinshaw exemption).
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I. Background
A. Current Regulations
2. Section 284.13(e) of the Commission's regulations requires
interstate pipelines to file semi-annual storage reports at the end of
each complete storage injection and withdrawal season. Section
284.126(c) requires similar semi-annual reports by section 311 and
Hinshaw pipelines providing interstate storage service. The reports by
the two sets of pipelines must include:
(1) The identity of each customer injecting gas into storage
and/or withdrawing gas from storage (including, for interstate
pipelines, any affiliate relationship),
(2) The rate schedule (for interstate pipelines) or docket
number (for intrastate pipelines) authorizing the storage injection
or withdrawal service,
(3) The maximum storage quantity and maximum daily withdrawal
quantity applicable to each storage customer,
(4) For each storage customer, the volume of gas (in dekatherms)
injected into and/or withdrawn from storage during the period,
(5) The unit charge and total revenues received during the
injection/withdrawal period from each storage customer (including,
for interstate pipelines, any discounts), and
(6) For intrastate pipelines, any related docket numbers under
which the intrastate pipeline reported storage related injection/
withdrawal transportation services.
The pipelines must file these reports within 30 days of the end of each
complete storage injection and withdrawal season, and the reports must
be signed under oath by a senior official. The Commission has not
adopted any standardized electronic form for pipelines to submit the
semi-annual storage reports, nor has the Commission expressly required
that the reports be public.
3. The Commission adopted the existing semi-annual storage
reporting requirements for both interstate and intrastate pipelines in
1992 as part of Order No. 636,\3\ and there have been only minor
modifications in the semi-annual storage reporting requirements since
that date.\4\ However, the Commission has added other reporting
requirements for both sets of pipelines, which include much of the same
information as is included in the semi-annual storage reports.
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\3\ Pipeline Service Obligations and Revisions to Regulations
Governing Self-Implementing Transportation; and Regulation of
Natural Gas Pipelines After Partial Wellhead Decontrol, Order No.
636, FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 30,939, order on reh'g, Order No. 636-A,
FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 30,950, order on reh'g, Order No. 636-B, 61
FERC ] 61,272 (1992), order on reh'g, 62 FERC ] 61,007 (1993), aff'd
in part and remanded in part sub nom. United Distribution Cos. v.
FERC, 88 F.3d 1105 (D.C. Cir. 1996), order on remand, Order No. 636-
C, 78 FERC ] 61,186 (1997).
\4\ In 1995 in Order No. 581, the Commission held that it would
``retain the semi-annual storage reports,'' and ``not exempt
intrastate storage companies charging market-based rates from the
requirement to file semi-annual storage reports,'' and made minor
changes to the regulatory text. Revisions to Uniform System of
Accounts, Forms, Statements, and Reporting Requirements for Natural
Gas Companies, Order No. 581, 60 FR 53019, 53049-51, FERC Stats. &
Regs. ] 31,026 (1995), order on reh'g, Order No. 581-A, FERC Stats.
& Regs. ] 31,032 (1996).
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4. First, in 2000, the Commission issued Order No. 637,\5\ revising
the reporting requirements for interstate pipelines in order to require
them to post on their internet websites basic information on the terms
of each transportation and storage contract with individual shippers,
no later than the first nomination under a transaction.\6\ These
posting requirements are set forth in section 284.13(b) of the
Commission's regulations.\7\ That section requires interstate pipelines
to make daily postings of the same types of information about both firm
and interruptible storage transactions as is contained in the
interstate pipelines' semi-annual storage reports, except for (1) The
amount of gas injected and withdrawn from storage by each individual
customer, (2) storage revenues from each individual customer, and (3)
the rate schedule authorizing the injection or withdrawal service.\8\
Order No. 637 also retained the existing requirement that interstate
pipelines post an index of their firm customers each quarter and
expanded the information that must be included in that index.\9\ Among
other things, that index must include the rate schedule under which
service under each firm contract is provided. However, Order No. 637
did not significantly modify the semi-annual storage reporting
requirement for interstate pipelines.\10\
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\5\ Regulation of Short-Term Natural Gas Transportation Services
and Regulation of Interstate Natural Gas Transportation Services,
Order No. 637, FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 31,091, clarified, Order No.
637-A, FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 31,099, reh'g denied, Order No. 637-B,
92 FERC ] 61,062 (2000), aff'd in part and remanded in part sub nom.
Interstate Natural Gas Ass'n of America v. FERC, 285 F.3d 18 (D.C.
Cir. 2002), order on remand, 101 FERC ] 61,127 (2002), order on
reh'g, 106 FERC ] 61,088 (2004), aff'd sub nom. American Gas Ass'n
v. FERC, 428 F.3d 255 (D.C. Cir. 2005).
\6\ The information to be posted includes the name of the
shipper, the contract number (for firm service), the rate charged,
the maximum rate, the duration (for firm service), the receipt and
delivery points and zones covered, the quantity of natural gas
covered, any special terms or details (such as any deviations from
the tariff), and whether any affiliate relationship exists.
\7\ 18 CFR 284.13(b).
\8\ Because the semi-annual reporting periods are tied to the
injection and withdrawal season, the time periods covered by that
report do not correspond with the time periods covered by the
interstate pipelines' reports.
\9\ Order No. 637 moved the index of customers requirement from
Sec. 284.106(c) to Sec. 284.13(c).
\10\ Order No. 637 moved the interstate semi-annual storage
reporting requirement from Sec. 284.106(b) to Sec. 284.13(e), and
eliminated the requirement that interstate pipelines identify in
their semi-annual storage reports any related docket numbers under
which the interstate pipeline reported storage related injection/
withdrawal transportation services.
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5. Order No. 637 did not modify any of the reporting requirements
for section 311 and Hinshaw pipelines. However, in 2010, the Commission
issued Order No. 735 to bring the transactional reporting requirements
for section 311 pipelines and Hinshaw pipelines closer in line with the
18 CFR 284.13(b) posting requirements for interstate pipelines.\11\
Before Order No. 735, section 284.126(b) required section 311 and
Hinshaw pipelines to make an annual report of their transportation
transactions excluding storage transactions. Thus, the semi-annual
storage report required by section 284.126(c) was the only place where
section 311 and Hinshaw pipelines reported their storage transactions.
However, Order No. 735 made a number of changes in the former annual
transportation reporting requirements at 18 CFR 284.126(b), including
requiring that the report cover storage transactions and be filed
quarterly. As amended by Order No. 735, section 284.126(b) requires
that section 311 and Hinshaw pipelines file the quarterly reports of
their transportation and storage transactions in a standardized
electronic format, and requires that those reports be public. As
revised in a December 2010 order on rehearing, Order No. 735-A, the new
quarterly reports must contain the following information on each
transportation and storage transaction, aggregated by contract:
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\11\ Contract Reporting Requirements of Intrastate Natural Gas
Companies, Order No. 735, 75 FR 29404, FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 31,310,
131 FERC ] 61,150, order on reh'g, Order No. 735-A, 75 FR 80685, 133
FERC ] 61,216 (2010).
i. The full legal name and identification number of the shipper
receiving the service, including whether there is an affiliate
relationship between the pipeline and the shipper;
ii. The type of service performed (i.e., firm or interruptible
transportation, storage, or other service);
iii. The rate charged under each contract, specifying the rate
schedule/name of service and docket where the rates were approved.
The report should separately state each rate
[[Page 58743]]
component set forth in the contract (i.e., reservation, usage, and
any other charges);
iv. The primary receipt and delivery points covered by the
contract, identified by the list of points that the pipeline has
published with the Commission, which shall include the industry
common code for each point where one has already been established;
v. The quantity of natural gas the shipper is entitled to
transport, store, or deliver under each contract;
vi. The duration of the contract, specifying the beginning and
(for firm contracts only) ending month and year of the current
agreement;
vii. Total volumes transported, stored, injected, or withdrawn
for the shipper; and
viii. Annual revenues received for each shipper, excluding
revenues from storage services. The report should separately state
revenues received under each component, and need only be reported
every fourth quarter.
6. Thus, the revised quarterly reports require section 311 and
Hinshaw pipelines to report the same types of information about firm
and interruptible storage transactions as is contained in their semi-
annual storage reports, except for storage revenues from each
individual storage customer. In addition, because the semi-annual
reporting periods are tied to the injection and withdrawal season, the
time periods covered by each report do not correspond precisely. Order
No. 735 did not modify the existing semi-annual storage reporting
requirement for section 311 and Hinshaw pipelines in section 284.126(c)
of the Commission's regulations in any way.
B. Notice of Inquiry
7. On rehearing of Order No. 735, several parties argued that the
semi-annual storage reporting requirement for section 311 and Hinshaw
pipelines at 18 CFR 284.126(c) should be eliminated. The parties argued
that Order No. 735 has made the existing semi-annual storage reporting
requirement for those pipelines duplicative. In response, in December
2010, the Commission issued a Notice of Inquiry (NOI) to consider
whether and how the semi-annual storage reports required of both
interstate and intrastate pipelines should be modified.
8. In the NOI, the Commission noted that the semi-annual storage
reports overlapped significantly, but not entirely, with the new
reporting requirement for intrastate pipelines. The NOI also noted that
interstate pipelines, which are not affected by Order No. 735, file
semi-annual storage reports as well. Accordingly, the Commission sought
comment from all interested parties on the future of the semi-annual
storage reports, in light of changes in the natural gas market since
the Commission originally adopted the requirements and in light of
recent improvements in the Commission's other reporting requirements.
C. Comments to the Notice of Inquiry
9. Twelve companies and associations, listed in the Appendix to
this order, filed comments in response to the NOI. APGA states that it
supports increased transparency, and specifically advocates that all
pipelines should report revenues received from each storage customer.
IOGA comments that it ``supports the maximum reasonable level of
transparency,'' \12\ and specifically recommends that (1) Form 549D be
expanded to collect information on storage compressor fuel and lost and
unaccounted-for gas, (2) interstate pipelines be required to show the
rate components in each storage customer's contracts separately and
also ``show recourse rates, the customers under such rates, and any
discounted or negotiated rate customer separately,'' \13\ and (3) cost-
of-service storage providers be required to provide individual customer
revenue.
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\12\ IOGA comments at 1.
\13\ IOGA comments at 5.
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10. No other parties advocate any expansion of the current
reporting requirements. The other industry associations that filed
comments, AGA, INGAA, NGSA, and TPA, are all in consensus that ``the
Commission should focus its efforts on ensuring that the transparency
requirements that are already in place for pipelines are effectively
applied.'' \14\ AGA, INGAA, and TPA, who generally represent the
Hinshaw, interstate, and section 311 pipelines, respectively, urge the
Commission to eliminate the semi-annual storage report. The remaining
comments, all from storage companies (Enstor, Jefferson, Niska,
Northern, Spectra, and DTE) were either partly opposed \15\ or totally
opposed \16\ to continuing the existing semi-annual storage report.
These commenters point out that, with respect to section 311 and
Hinshaw pipelines, the existing semi-annual storage reports largely
duplicate the new Order No. 735 quarterly reports, and with respect to
interstate pipelines, semi-annual storage reports largely duplicate the
section 284.13(b) Web site posting requirements. Therefore, they
contend, the Commission should reduce or eliminate the semi-annual
reporting requirements.
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\14\ NGSA comments at 2.
\15\ E.g., Northern comments at 3 (``The report should not
duplicate any information already provided publicly elsewhere.'')
\16\ E.g., Jefferson comments at 3 (``Jefferson Island believes
that the Commission should eliminate the requirement for semi-annual
storage reports.'')
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D. Executive Orders
11. On January 18, 2011, President Obama issued Executive Order
13563, ``Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review,'' (EO 13563) \17\
and a presidential memorandum on regulatory flexibility, small
business, and job creation (Regulatory Flexibility Memo).\18\ The
Commission, as an independent agency, is not subject to requirements of
those presidential documents. Nonetheless, Chairman Wellinghoff
directed Commission staff to perform an internal assessment of the
effectiveness of Commission regulations. Subsequently, on July 11,
2011, the President issued an executive order asking independent
regulatory agencies such as the Commission to take steps to reassess
and streamline existing regulations.\19\
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\17\ 76 FR 3,821 (Jan. 21, 2011).
\18\ 76 FR 3,827 (Jan. 21, 2011).
\19\ Regulation and Independent Regulatory Agencies, Exec. Order
13579, 76 FR 41587 (2011). The Commission is in the process of
implementing this executive order.
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12. The Commission continually seeks to streamline its regulations
in order to foster competitive markets, facilitate enhanced
competition, and avoid imposing undue burdens on regulated entities or
unnecessary costs on those entities or their customers. We note that
the NOI in this proceeding was issued in December 2010, before issuance
of the above-noted executive orders. In analyzing the comments received
in response to the NOI, the Commission considered the goals of those
Executive Orders. In this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the Commission
is seeking to streamline our natural gas pipeline reporting
requirements, as part of our continuing efforts to ensure Commission
regulations are effective, timely, and up to date.
II. Discussion
13. In this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the Commission is
proposing to delete both sections 284.13(e) and 284.126(c) from our
regulations. The semi-annual storage reporting requirements in those
regulations appear for the most part to duplicate other reporting
requirements. To the extent those reports do include information not
reported elsewhere, the burden of requiring pipelines to report that
information appears to outweigh any benefits to the Commission or the
public of requiring such information to continue to be reported on a
regular basis. If such information is needed in a particular case, the
Commission
[[Page 58744]]
retains the ability to seek such information through a data request to
the pipeline in question.
A. Interstate Storage Reports
14. The Commission proposes eliminating 18 CFR 284.13(e), which
requires semi-annual storage reports from interstate pipelines. That
report is no longer necessary for shippers to make informed decisions
about their capacity purchases, or for the Commission and shippers to
monitor storage transactions to determine if market power is being
exercised.
15. As described above, since Order No. 637 took effect over ten
years ago, interstate pipelines have been required to post on their
internet Web sites basic information, in downloadable file formats, on
the terms of each transportation and storage contract with individual
shippers, no later than the first nomination under a transaction. As
detailed in 18 CFR 284.13(b), for every transaction, including capacity
release transactions, the pipeline must post:
a. The full legal name, and identification number, of the shipper
receiving service;
b. The rate charged;
c. The maximum rate;
d. The receipt and delivery points covered between which the
shipper is entitled to transport gas at the rate charged, including the
industry common code for each point, zone, or segment;
e. The quantity of gas the shipper is entitled to transport;
f. Special details pertaining to the agreement, including
conditions applicable to a discounted transportation contract and all
aspects in which the agreement deviates from the pipeline's tariff; and
g. Whether the shipper is affiliated with the pipeline.
In addition, for firm or capacity release contracts, the pipeline
must post:
h. The contract number,
i. The duration of the contract, and
j. Whether the transaction involves a capacity release to an asset
manager or a retail access program.\20\
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\20\ Section 284.13(c) also requires interstate pipelines to
post at the beginning of each quarter an index of their firm
transportation and storage customers, including information about
the shippers' contractual entitlements and the duration of their
contracts, but not the rates to be paid by the shipper.
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16. As the Commission held in Order No. 637, the transactional
information included in the interstate pipelines' daily postings of
both transportation and storage contracts ``provides price transparency
so shippers can make informed purchasing decisions, and also permits
both shippers and the Commission to monitor actual transactions for
evidence of the possible abuse of market power.'' \21\ There appears no
need to require interstate pipelines to continue filing an additional
semi-annual report of their storage transactions containing much the
same information Order No. 637 requires them to post on a daily basis
to accomplish the goal of price transparency. The Commission does not
require interstate pipelines to file any comparable additional report
of their non-storage transportation transactions. Thus, since the
issuance of Order No. 637 in 2000, industry participants have been
relying primarily on the pipelines' daily postings required by section
284.13(b) to obtain information about individual non-storage
transportation transactions.\22\ There appears to be nothing unique
about storage transactions which requires more stringent reporting
requirements than for other transportation transactions in order to
accomplish the goal of price transparency.
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\21\ Order No. 637, FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 31,091 at 31,320.
\22\ The Commission also requires interstate pipelines to file
each of their negotiated rate transactions with the Commission for
its approval, thereby providing other shippers notice and an
opportunity to comment on each such transaction. See Natural Gas
Pipeline Negotiated Rate Policies and Practices, 104 FERC ] 61,134,
at P 31-34 (2003). Similarly, the Commission requires interstate
pipelines to file all contracts which materially deviate from the
form of service agreements in their tariffs. See Southern Star
Central, 125 FERC ] 61,082 (2008); Natural Gas Pipeline Negotiated
Rate Policies and Practices, 104 FERC ] 61,134 (2003), order on
rehearing and clarification, 114 FERC ] 61,042 (2006); Columbia Gas
Transmission Corp., 97 FERC ] 61,221, at 62,010 (2001).
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17. The Commission recognizes that the semi-annual storage reports
do provide certain information that is not provided by the interstate
pipelines' daily 18 CFR 284.13(b) Web site postings. This information
includes:
i. the volume of gas actually injected into and/or withdrawn from
storage for each customer during each complete storage injection and
withdrawal period, and
ii. the total revenues received during the injection/withdrawal
period from each storage customer, including any discounts.\23\
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\23\ The daily postings also do not include the rate schedule
authorizing the injection or withdrawal service. However, section
284.13(c) requires that this information be included in the Index of
Customers for firm shippers, and no commenter has expressed concern
about not collecting this information for interruptible storage
service.
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18. These two elements are not available to the public on a per-
customer basis in any other report. However, the primary value of
information about volumes of gas injected into and withdrawn from
storage is to permit shippers to monitor the availability of storage
capacity and whether shippers or the pipeline are withholding storage
capacity.\24\ Section 284.13(d) requires interstate pipelines to
provide on their websites ``equal and timely access to information
relevant to the availability of all transportation services whenever
capacity is scheduled, including * * * in storage fields, whether the
capacity is available directly from the pipeline or through capacity
release.'' \25\ While these postings do not provide individual shipper
injection and withdrawal information, they appear far more useful to
shippers because they provide information about the availability of
capacity at the time shippers are seeking to schedule capacity. By
contrast, the semi-annual storage reports are not filed until up to 30
days after the completion of each injection and withdrawal season. The
Commission also notes the commenters opposing elimination of the semi-
annual storage reports have not explained how the after-the-fact
customer-by-customer storage injection and withdrawal information
significantly benefits the market. This suggests that the alternative
reporting requirements do indeed meet the market's needs, and that the
semi-annual storage report is duplicative.
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\24\ See Order No. 637, FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 31,091 at 31,320.
\25\ In addition, the Energy Information Administration
publishes weekly underground storage data, including base gas,
working gas in storage, and injection and withdrawal volumes by
storage facility type and region. Available at http://www.eia.gov/naturalgas/data.cfm#storage.
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19. On the per-customer revenue reporting requirement, which is not
collected by other reporting requirements, only APGA and IOGA support
its retention. APGA argues this requirement is useful to ``indicate
whether * * * providers * * * should have their market-based
authorization reviewed.'' \26\ IOGA supports revenue reporting for
cost-of-service interstate storage providers, but, in contrast to APGA,
IOGA agrees that market-based storage providers need not have the same
reporting obligations with respect to revenues.\27\
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\26\ APGA comments at 4.
\27\ IOGA comments at 5.
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20. APGA has not explained how per-customer revenue information
would significantly enhance the Commission and the parties' ability to
determine whether a market-based interstate storage provider should
have its authorization to charge market-based
[[Page 58745]]
rates reviewed. The determination whether a storage provider lacks
market power, thus justifying market-based rates, turns on the
available competitive alternatives to the storage provider in its
relevant markets, the market concentration in those markets, and the
storage providers' market share.\28\ In addition, section 284.504(b) of
the Commission's regulations requires storage providers with market-
based rates to notify the Commission within 10 days of acquiring
knowledge of significant changes occurring in its market power status.
Such changes are generally matters affecting the storage provider's
market share, as opposed to the revenues the storage provider has
collected from individual shippers. In any event, while the section
284.13(b) daily postings do not require interstate storage providers
with market-based rates to post the revenues collected from each
customer, that section does require such storage providers to post the
per-unit rates they charge to each customer, thus enabling shippers to
monitor the storage provider's actions for potentially discriminatory
practices.
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\28\ See 18 CFR 284.503(b) (adopted by Order No. 678, Rate
Regulation of Certain Natural Gas Storage Facilities, 71 FR 36636,
115 FERC ] 61, 343 (2006)).
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21. With regard to IOGA's concerns about the reporting of per-
customer revenue information by cost-based interstate storage
providers, the Commission similarly finds that IOGA has not shown that
the benefit of reporting such per-customer revenue information in
addition to the per-unit rate information already posted on a daily
basis outweighs the burden of such a reporting requirement. Sections
260.1 and 260.2 of the Commission's regulations require cost-based
interstate storage providers to file either a Form 2 or a Form 2-A each
year containing extensive revenue and cost data. This enables the
Commission and shippers to review whether the pipeline is significantly
over-recovering its costs. The Commission also notes that neither party
has shown that customers are using the revenue data already available
through the existing semi-annual storage reports.
22. IOGA recommends that interstate pipelines also be required to
show their recourse rates, the customers under such rates, and any
discounted or negotiated rate separately. However, section
284.13(b)(1)(iv) and (b)(2)(iii) already requires interstate pipelines
to post both the maximum rate applicable to each contract and the
actual rate charged under that contract. Moreover, pursuant to
standards adopted by NAESB, those postings must separately state the
components of the contract rate, including surcharges.\29\ In addition,
section 284.13(c)(2)(vii) requires that the Index of Customers posted
by the interstate pipeline indicate whether each firm shipper's rate is
a negotiated rate.
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\29\ NAESB WGQ Standards 5.4.20-5.4.22.
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23. Finally, the Commission notes that it retains its ability to
obtain any of the above discussed information in response to individual
filings under sections 4 and 5 of the Natural Gas Act, and through its
investigative authority. No party, however, has provided comments
explaining how storage customers would benefit from having this
information from all pipelines on a generic basis rather than a case-
by-case basis. Nor has any party provided comments explaining how this
benefit would outweigh the filers' burden. Thus, the Commission
proposes in this notice to eliminate 18 CFR 284.13(e), and does not
propose to introduce any new reporting requirements for interstate
storage facilities at this time.
B. Intrastate and Hinshaw Storage Reports
24. The Commission also proposes eliminating 18 CFR 284.126(c),
which requires semi-annual storage reports from section 311 and Hinshaw
pipelines for much the same reasons as the Commission proposes to
eliminate the corresponding reporting requirement for interstate
pipelines. In Order Nos. 735 and 735-A, the Commission specifically
copied all the substantive elements of the semi-annual storage reports
in developing the requirements for the new quarterly transportation for
both transportation and storage transactions, except that the
Commission did not require section 311 and Hinshaw storage providers to
report the revenues collected from each storage customer. In addition,
because the semi-annual reporting periods are tied to the injection and
withdrawal season, the time periods covered by each report do not
correspond precisely.
25. Accordingly, as numerous commenters have pointed out, for
section 311 and Hinshaw pipelines, the semi-annual storage reports are
now largely duplicative. As discussed in the preceding section, APGA
and IOGA have both expressed concern about eliminating the requirement
for pipelines to report per-customer storage revenues. In Order Nos.
735 and 735-A, the Commission considered requiring individual customer
storage revenue in the quarterly reports, as IOGA and APGA request, but
chose not to implement that requirement pending the present proceeding.
As discussed in the preceding section, APGA argues this requirement is
useful for purposes of determining whether a storage provider should
have its market-based authorization reviewed; however, APGA has not
explained how per-customer revenue information would significantly
enhance the Commission's and the parties' ability to determine whether
a market-based storage provider should have its authorization to charge
market-based rates reviewed. IOGA supports requiring storage providers
with cost-based rates to report per-customer revenues, but states it is
more concerned with interstate storage providers than with section 311
or Hinshaw storage providers. In the present proceeding, no new
evidence or arguments have come to light that compel us to require
section 311 and Hinshaw storage providers to report per-customer
storage revenue. The pipelines commenting in this proceeding have
provided detailed arguments that providing the public with individual
customer storage revenue is burdensome, while proponents of collecting
this information have only offered basic statements of support.
26. IOGA recommends that the Form 549D be expanded to collect
information on ``storage compressor fuel and lost and unaccounted-for
gas * * * to better understand what is reasonable in the industry and
as an alert to potential problems.'' \30\ The Commission does collect
this information for interstate pipelines on Form 2,\31\ but does not
currently collect it for section 311 and Hinshaw pipelines. Where
section 311 and Hinshaw pipelines apply a separate charge in their
rates, the Commission generally either requires the pipeline to
establish a tracker and true-up mechanism in their statements of
operating conditions (e.g., for fuel and lost or unaccounted-for gas),
or else the Commission reviews the charge as part of its periodic rate
review every five years. In its regularly scheduled tracker filings,
the pipeline bears the burden to demonstrate that its proposed updated
reimbursement percentages are fair and equitable. This established
method allows the Commission and customers to scrutinize fuel use on a
case-by-case basis, taking into account the unique operational
[[Page 58746]]
characteristics of each storage facility. Accordingly, we decline to
impose the added burden of collecting this information again on a
generic basis in Form 549D.
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\30\ IOGA at 4.
\31\ Revisions to Forms, Statements, and Reporting Requirements
for Natural Gas Pipelines Order No. 710, FERC Stats. & Regs. ]
31,267 (2008) (Order No. 710); order on reh'g and clarification,
Order No. 710-A, 123 FERC ] 61,278 (2008), Order No. 710-B, 76 FR
4516 (Jan. 26, 2011), 134 FERC ] 61,033 (2011), order on reh'g,
Order No. 710-C 136 FERC ] 61,109 (2011).
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27. Finally, no commenter has indicated that there is a continuing
need for section 311 and Hinshaw transactional information to be
reported by injection and withdrawal seasons, as opposed to on a
quarterly basis.
28. Accordingly, the Commission proposes in this notice to
eliminate 18 CFR 284.126(c), and does not propose to introduce any new
reporting requirements for section 311 and Hinshaw storage facilities
at this time.
III. Regulatory Requirements
A. Information Collection Statement
29. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations require
that OMB approve certain reporting, record keeping, and public
disclosure requirements (collections of information) imposed by an
agency.\32\ Therefore, the Commission is providing notice of its
proposed elimination of the information collections.\33\ This proposed
rule will be submitted to OMB for review in accordance with the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.\34\
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\32\ 5 CFR 1320.
\33\ In the Notice of Inquiry in Docket No. RM11-4, the
Commission referred to the FERC Form No. 549B reporting requirements
(in 18 CFR 284.13(e), OMB Control No. 1902-0169) and the Form No.
549 reporting requirements (in 18 CFR 284.126(c), OMB Control No.
1902-0089). After further review, we have determined that the
affected reporting requirements are included instead in FERC-549 (18
CFR 284.13(e), OMB Control No. 1902-0086) and in FERC-537 (18 CFR
284.126(c), OMB Control No. 1902-0060).
\34\ 44 U.S.C. 3507(d).
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30. Under the Paperwork Reduction Act and OMB's implementing
regulations, OMB clearance for information collections in current rules
should be current and active. In separate Docket No. IC11-549-000, the
Commission is requesting comments on the need for and burden related to
the FERC-549 in order to ensure OMB approval continues while the
Commission obtains comments and completes action in Docket No. RM11-
4.\35\
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\35\ FERC-549 includes the Semi-Annual Storage Reports for
Interstate Pipelines, in 18 CFR 284.13(e), and several other
reporting requirements. The Notice in Docket IC11-549-000 was issued
July 28, 2011 (76 FR 46783, August 3, 2011) as part of the OMB
clearance process for the entire set of requirements under FERC-549.
In Docket No. IC11-549-000, the Commission is seeking to continue
the OMB clearance for the Semi-Annual Storage Reports for Interstate
Pipelines in 18 CFR 284.13(e) until the resolution of the final rule
in Docket No. RM11-4.
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31. The Commission is proposing to eliminate two reporting
requirements and to remove the burden of those requirements from
jurisdictional entities.
Information Collections:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total
annual
Information collection (or part Number of Annual burden
of) proposed for deletion in NOPR Part of OMB Number of filings per Burden hrs. burden hrs. hrs.,
in RM11-4 control No. respondents respondent per filing per proposed
per year respondent for
deletion
........... (a) (b) (c) (b x c) (a x b x c)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FERC-549, for the requirements in 1902-0086 155 2 12 24 3720
18 CFR 284.13(e).................
FERC-537, for the requirements in 1902-0060 50 2 27 54 2700
18 CFR 284.126(c)................
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Grand Total................... ........... 205 ........... ........... ........... 6420
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Title: Semi-annual storage reporting requirements for Interstate
and Intrastate Natural Gas Companies (currently codified in 18 CFR
284.13(e) and 18 CFR 284.126(c)).
Respondents: Interstate and Intrastate Natural Gas Companies.
32. Internal review: The Commission has reviewed the semi-annual
storage reporting requirements for Interstate and Intrastate Natural
Gas Companies that are currently codified in 18 CFR 284.13(e) and 18
CFR 284.126(c). The Commission has determined that the reports now
proposed for elimination are largely duplicative of other reporting
requirements.
33. Interested persons may obtain information on the reporting
requirements proposed for deletion by contacting: Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426
[Attention: Ellen Brown, Office of the Executive Director, e-mail:
[email protected], Phone: (202) 502-8663, fax: (202) 273-0873].
Comments on the requirements proposed for deletion in this rule may
also be sent to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs,
Office of Management and Budget, Washington, DC 20503 [Attention: Desk
Officer for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission]. For security
reasons, comments should be sent by e-mail to OMB at [email protected]. Please reference OMB Control Nos. 1902-0169 and
1902-0089 in your submission.
B. Environmental Analysis
34. The Commission is required to prepare an Environmental
Assessment or an Environmental Impact Statement for any action that may
have a significant adverse effect on the human environment.\36\ The
Commission has categorically excluded certain actions from these
requirements as not having a significant effect on the human
environment.\37\ The actions proposed to be taken here fall within
categorical exclusions in the Commission's regulations for rules that
are corrective, clarifying, or procedural, for information gathering,
analysis, and dissemination, and for sales, exchange, and
transportation of natural gas that requires no construction of
facilities.\38\ Therefore an environmental review is unnecessary and
has not been prepared in this rulemaking.
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\36\ Order No. 486, Regulations Implementing the National
Environmental Policy Act, 52 FR 47897 (Dec. 17, 1987), FERC Stats. &
Regs. Preambles 1986-1990 ] 30,783 (1987).
\37\ 18 CFR 380.4.
\38\ See 18 CFR 380.4(a)(2)(ii), 380.4(a)(5), and 380.4(a)(27).
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C. Regulatory Flexibility Act [Analysis Or Certification]
35. The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 (RFA) \39\ generally
requires a description and analysis of proposed rules and final rules
that will have significant economic impact on a substantial number of
small entities. Most of the natural gas companies regulated by the
Commission do not fall within the RFA's definition of a small
entity.\40\ Any economic impact from the
[[Page 58747]]
proposed rulemaking would be due to the elimination of unnecessary
filing burdens and costs on small and large entities. Accordingly, the
Commission certifies that this proposed rule will not have a
significant impact on a substantial number of small entities.
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\39\ 5 U.S.C. 601-612.
\40\ See 5 U.S.C. 601(3) (citing section 3 of the Small Business
Act, 15 U.S.C. 623, which defines a ``small business concern'' as a
business which is independently owned and operated and which is not
dominant in its field of operation. The Small Business Size
Standards component of the North American Industry Classification
System defines a small natural gas pipeline company as one that
transports natural gas and whose annual receipts (total income plus
cost of goods sold) did not exceed $7 million for the previous
year).
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D. Comment Procedures
36. The Commission invites interested persons to submit comments on
the matters and issues proposed in this notice to be adopted, including
any related matters or alternative proposals that commenters may wish
to discuss. Comments are due November 21, 2011. Comments must refer to
Docket No. RM11-4-000, and must include the commenter's name, the
organization they represent, if applicable, and their address in their
comments.
37. The Commission encourages comments to be filed electronically
via the eFiling link on the Commission's Web site at http://www.ferc.gov. The Commission accepts most standard word processing
formats. Documents created electronically using word processing
software should be filed in native applications or print-to-PDF format
and not in a scanned format. Commenters filing electronically do not
need to make a paper filing.
38. Commenters that are not able to file comments electronically
must send an original of their comments to: Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, Secretary of the Commission, 888 First Street, NE.,
Washington, DC 20426.
39. All comments will be placed in the Commission's public files
and may be viewed, printed, or downloaded remotely as described in the
Document Availability section below. Commenters on this proposal are
not required to serve copies of their comments on other commenters.
E. Document Availability
40. In addition to publishing the full text of this document in the
Federal Register, the Commission provides all interested persons an
opportunity to view and/or print the contents of this document via the
Internet through the Commission's Home Page (http://www.ferc.gov) and
in the Commission's Public Reference Room during normal business hours
(8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern time) at 888 First Street, NE., Room 2A,
Washington, DC 20426.
41. From the Commission's Home Page on the Internet, this
information is available on eLibrary. The full text of this document is
available on eLibrary in PDF and Microsoft Word format for viewing,
printing, and/or downloading. To access this document in eLibrary, type
the docket number excluding the last three digits of this document in
the docket number field.
42. User assistance is available for eLibrary and the Commission's
Web site during normal business hours from the Commission's Online
Support at (202) 502-6652 (toll free at 1-(866) 208-3676) or e-mail at
[email protected], or the Public Reference Room at (202) 502-
8371, TTY (202) 502-8659. E-mail the Public Reference Room at
[email protected].
List of Subjects in 18 CFR Part 284
Continental shelf, Natural gas, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements.
By direction of the Commission.
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.
In consideration of the foregoing, the Commission proposes to amend
Part 284, Chapter I, Title 18, Code of Federal Regulations, as follows.
PART 284--CERTAIN SALES AND TRANSPORTATION OF NATURAL GAS UNDER THE
NATURAL GAS POLICY ACT OF 1978 AND RELATED AUTHORITIES
1. The authority citation for part 284 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 15 U.S.C. 717-717w, 3301-3432; 42 U.S.C. 7101-7352;
43 U.S.C. 1331-1356.
Sec. 284.13 [Amended]
2. In Sec. 284.13, remove paragraph (e) and paragraph (f) is
redesignated as paragraph (e).
Sec. 284.126 [Amended]
3. In Sec. 284.126, remove paragraph (c).
Note: The following appendix will not appear in the Code of
Federal Regulations.
Appendix
List of Commenters and Abbreviations
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Commenter Abbreviation
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American Gas Association....................... AGA
American Public Gas Association................ APGA
Enstor Operating Company, LLC.................. Enstor
Independent Oil and Gas Association of West IOGA
Virginia.
Interstate Natural Gas Association of America.. INGAA
Jefferson Island Storage & Hub, LLC............ Jefferson
Natural Gas Supply Association................. NGSA
Niska Gas Storage LLC.......................... Niska
Northern Natural Gas Company................... Northern
Spectra Energy Transmission, LLC & Spectra Spectra
Energy Corp.
Texas Pipeline Association..................... TPA
Washington 10 Storage Corp. & Michigan DTE
Consolidated Gas Co.
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[FR Doc. 2011-24166 Filed 9-21-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P