Monthly Archives: January 2014

January 20, 2014 · 5:43 pm

Schedule for GNTL Docket

Last Friday was the Prehearing Conference and an odd time was had by all. It’s admittedly ALJ Ann O’Reilly’s first transmission contested case, so she’ll be having a fun time, I’m sure. And I’m pretty sure it’s also Christi Brusven’s first big transmission line, and even Eric Swanson’s… ya know, I’m really feeling like an old fart!

The most interesting part of this is that the “Regional Utilities” are planning to intervene, Xcel, Otter Tail Power, and MRES, with the purpose of telling the Commission that it should instead use its “system alternative” which would connect down to CapX 2020! Like wow, that’s going to be a hoot! I don’t know that’s ever been tried before, kinda cheeky, eh? But they’ve got to fill CapX with something, and we all knew it wasn’t needed, didn’t we?!?!

Here’s the “system alternative” line from Dorsey into CapX at Barnesville (p. 11, North Area Study, Application, Appendix M) (note that for this study they increased Manitoba Hydro imports to 1,100MW):

And now for the proposed schedule… We’ll be circulating the scheduling order and then send it to the ALJ, so it’s not official, but this is pretty much it, and when it IS official, I’ll be posting it.

The Environmental Review schedule continues as before:

Scoping Comments are due by 4:30 p.m. on March 14, 2014. Send to bill.storm@state.mn.us

The rest of the schedule looks like this:

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Filed under Hearings, PUC Filings

· 3:14 pm

Notice of Public Info & ER Meetings

It’s official — the PUC and Dept. of Commerce have issued Notice of the meetings in February:

Notice_ScopingMeetings_20141-95492-01

Scoping Comments are due by 4:30 p.m. on March 14, 2014. Send to bill.storm@state.mn.us

And here’s the schedule of the meetings — I think I’m going to opt out of Thief River Falls and Bemidji given the corridor options now:

But something on the maps bears a second look — the western route headed south from the border crossing down around Red Lake seems to have disappeared. Is that correct? I’m waiting to hear… and the verdict is, straight from the horse’s mouth:

This is the map we recently sent out to LGUs 90 days in advance of filing the route permit as required by Minn. Stat. 216E.03, subd. 3a as well as landowners. Those are the routes we are going to put in the route permit application. On the CoN scoping meetings we started with a larger study area and Notice Plan area so our thought was we still need to have coverage in that area and MPUC Staff agreed, though I’m not sure how many folks will attend in Bemidji or Thief River Falls.

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Filed under Meetings, Need

January 14, 2014 · 3:44 pm

Scheduling for GNTL Certificate of Need proceeding

We’re inching forward in the scheduling for the Not-so-Great Northern Transmission line proceeding at OAH. Commerce and Minnesota Power have sent in proposals, Commerce for the public hearings across the state, and MP for the whole shebang!

The Prehearing Conference is on Friday, THIS Friday, the 17th at 10 a.m. in the PUC’s Small Hearing Room.

Here are the proposals, starting with the TENTATIVE public hearing schedule:

Here’s MP’s proposed environmental review schedule (and it’s way too ambitious, Commerce can’t get anything done that fast, we’re always waiting for environmental review, and the public hearings shouldn’t be held before that’s done!):