ML19331C247

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Forwards Proposed Set of License Conditions for Settlement of Antitrust Proceedings
ML19331C247
Person / Time
Site: Comanche Peak, South Texas  Luminant icon.png
Issue date: 07/24/1980
From: Chanania F
NRC OFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE LEGAL DIRECTOR (OELD)
To: Balough R, Copeland J, Jeffery Wood
AUSTIN, TX, BAKER & BOTTS, MATTHEWS, NOWLIN, MACFARLANE & BARRETT
References
ISSUANCES-A, NUDOCS 8008140449
Download: ML19331C247 (6)


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July 24,1980 J. Gregory Copeland, Esq.

Jon C. Wood, Esq.

Baker & Botts Matthews, Nowlin, Macfarlane 3000 One Shell Plaza

& Barrett Houston, Texas 77002 1500 Alamo National Building San Antonio, Texas 78205 Richard C. Balough, Esq.

City of Austin P.O. Box 1088 Austin, Texas 78767 Re: Houston Lighting & Power Company, South Texas Project, Unit Nos.1

& 2, NRC Dkt. Nos. 50-498A, 50-499A; Texas Utilities Generating Company, et al., Comanche Peak Steam Electric Station, Units 1 and 2, NRC Docket Nos. 50 445A, 50-446A

Dear Sirs:

I have enclosed herewith the NRC Staff's proposed set of license conditions for tettlement of the South Texas antitrust licensing proceeding. These proposed conditions, and in particular the sections on transmission, are to be read together with the Transmission Services Settlement Agreement which I previously sent to you. The NRC Staff remains willing to consider and discuss specific comments that your respective company might have on the proposed settlement conditions and the Transmission Services Settlement Agreement. The NRC Staff is searching for the best way to arrive at a final agreement on South Texas settlement license conditions, and is willing to explore any reasonable avenues with you.

In light of the latest prehearing conference order of the Board and the time pressures occasioned thereby, the NRC Staff would appreciate a response from you as soon as possible. Thank you for your prompt att"' ion.

Sincerely, n,,

Fredric D. Chanania Counsel for NRC Staff

Enclosures:

As stated above cc: Michael I. Miller, Esq.

Robert FabriRant, Esq.

Marc R. Poirier, Esq.

Douglas F. John, Esq.

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NRC Staff Proposal July 24, 1980 LICENSE CONDITIONS FOR SOUTH TEXAS PROJECT UNITS NOS. 1 AND 2 o

I.

A.

The following definitions apply to paragraph I.B:

(1)

" Applicants" means severally and jointly Houston Lighting and Power Company (HLP), Central Power and Light Ccopany (CPL),

Camunity Public Service Board of San Antonio (CPSB), and the City of Austin Electric Utility Department (COA) and any of their respective successors engaged in the generation, trans-mission or the distribution of electric power. Where a license condition is directed to a specific Applicant, that Applicant is identified.

(2)

" South Texas Area" means Applicants' service areas and adjacent areas.

(3)

" Entity" means an electric utility which is a person, a private or public corporation, a governmental agency or authority, a municipality, a cooperative, or an association of any of the foregoing, owning or operating or proposing in good faith to own or operate facilities for generation, transmission or distribution of electric power and energy.

(4)

" Bulk Power" means the electric power and attendant energy supplied or made available at transmission or subtransmission voltages.

(5)

" Costs" means all appropriate operating and maintenance expenses and all ownership costs where applicable.

(6) The tems " connection" and " interconnection" are used inter-changeably.

B.

The Applicants defined in Paragraph I.A.(1) are subject to the following antitrust conditions:

(1) CPL shall afford to the Public Utilities Board of the City of Brownsville a reasonable opportunity to participate in the South Texas Project, Units 1 and 2, up to a 50 MW ownership interest in such units on reasonable tems and conditions and on a basis that will fully ccupensate CPL for its actual costs. CPL shall afford Brownsville reascnable transmission arrangements to anable it to obtain delivery of power from the South Texas Project.

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(2) The Applicants, as long as they are members of the Texas Interconnected System (TIS), shall support requests by Entities in the South Texas Area having generation capacity for member-ship in TIS. The Applicants shall also propose and actively support, as long as they are members thereof, the-creation of- -

one or more additional classifications of TIS membership (which may include non-voting membership for entities having no generation capacity) based on non-discriminatory criteria to afford access to data, studies and recommendations to all Entities in the-South Texas Area who desire membership. The Applicants will also support requests by Entities in the South Texas Area for membership in any other electric utility planning organization or power pool of which the Applicants are members. The Applicants shall share infornation with other Entities with respect to, and shall conduct with other such Entities through any electric utility planning organi-zations of which the Applicants are members, joint studies and planning of future generation, transmission and related facilities; prov.ided, however, that this condition shall not obligate the Applicants to conduct such joint studies or joint planning unless (1) the studies or planning are requested and carried out in good faith and based on reasonably realistic and reasonably complete data or projections, (2) the studies or planning are reasonably) justified on the basis of sound engineering principles, (3 appropriate protection is accorded._

proprietary or other confidential business and financial infor-mation, and (4) the costs for such studies or planning are allocated on a fair and equitable basis.

(3) The Applicants shall participate in and-facilitate the exchange of bulk power by transmission over the Applicants' transmission facilities between or among two or more Entities in the South Texas Area with which the Applicants are connected; and any such Entity (ies) and any Entity (ies) engaging in bulk power supply outside the South Texas Area between whose facilities the Applicants' transmission lines and other transmission lines would form a continuous electrical path, provided that (1) pennission to utilize such other transmission lines has been obtained by the proponent of the arrangement, and (ii) the l

arrangements reasonably can be accanmodated from a functional l

and technical standpoint.

Such transmission shall be on tems that fully campensate the Applicants for their costs including a reasonable return on investment; provided however that such transmission services and the rates to be charged therefor shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the appropriate regula-i tory agency (ies). Applicants shall file with such appropriate regulatory agency (ies) a rate or rates for such transmission services, which rate (s) shall become effective immediately and t._ m.

which shall be collected subject to refund pending the outcme of any regulatory proceeding on that rate (s). The Applicants shall not refuse to provide such transmission services merely because the rate (s) to be charged therefor are the subject of dispute before such regulatory agency (ies).

Unless otherwise required by paragraph (6) below, such rate (s) shall be filed as soon as practicable but no later than the date of issuance of the South Texas operating license or the FERC Order in Docket No. EL79-8, whichever occurs first. Any Entity (ies) able advance notice of its (their)gements shall give reason..

requesting such transmission arran schedule and requirements.

The Applicants shall not be required to enter into any arrange-ment which would unreasonably impair system reliability or emergency transmission capacity.

(4) The Applicants shall include in their planning and construc-tion programs sufficient transmission capacity as required for the transactions referred to in paragraph I.B.(3), above, provided any Entity (fes) in the South Texas Area gives the Applicants sufficient advance notice as may be necessary to acccmmodate its (their) requirements from a functional and technical standpoint and that such Entity (tas) fully cmpen-sates the Applicants for their costs including a reasonable return on investment. The Applicants shall not be required to coristruct transmission facilities if construction of such facilities is infeasible, or if their costs in connection therewith would exceed their benefits therefrom, or if such would unreasonably impair system reliability or emergency transmission capacity.

In connection with the perfon::ance of their wligations above, the Applicants shall not be fore-closed from requiring a reasonable contribution in aid of construction or from making arrangements for coordinated construction of future transmission lines such that each of the parties to the transaction would own an interest in or a segment of the transmission addition in proportion to its share of the cost of the addition. Any such contribution made in aid of construction or ownership interest shall also be properly credited as an offset to any wheeling charges.

If the Applicants engage in joint ownership of tranmission lines with any other Entity, they shall not refuse to engage in similar traasactions in comparable circumstances with other Entities, subject to the provisions limiting the Appli-cants' obligations above.

(5) Central Power & Light shall, upon reasonable advance notice, sell full and partial requirements bulk power to requesting Entities in and adjacent to its service area under reasonable tenns and conditions which shall provide for recovery of

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4-Applicant's costs, including a reasonable return on investment.

Applicant shall not be required to make any such sale if it does not have available sufficient bulk power or adequate transmission to provide the requested service or if the sale would impair its ability to render adequate and reliable service to its own customers or its ability to discharge pricr conmitments.

(6) Applicants shall use their best efforts-to obtain approval by -

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the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ("FERC.") of CFL's Amended Interconnections Application in Docket No. EL 79 ~ ~ ~

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dated June 27, 1980, as modified by the substitution of the Transmission Service Settlement' Agreement dated July 2,1980, -

for paragraph 9 of the Amended Application and for paragraph g of the Prayer for Relief in the Amended Application. Applicants, unless ordered otherwise by the FERC, shall themselves provide transmission services to, from, and over the proposed DC Interconnections at a reasonable, single rate consistent with the Transmission Service Settlement Agreement. Applicants shall also use their best efforts to obtain any necessary approval of the proposed DC Interconnecticns before the Texas Public Utility Commission anc any other forum where actions must be taken. CFL and HLP shall use their best efforts to construct the proposed DC Interconnections in accordance with any final order of the FERC cr other regulatory authority (, )

and shall have the DC Interconnections in operation five 5

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years after the last regulatory approval necessary to begin construction has been-obtained, subject to reasonable exten-sions of time for good cause shown.

(7) Applicants shall make a minimum of fifteen (15) percent of the DC Interconnections which are the subject of FERC Docket No. EL 79-8 available for transmission service in a manner consistent with paragraph I.F.(8) of the Transmission Services i

Settlement Agreement.

(8)

In connection with the perfonnance of their obligations above-and subject to the provisions hereinafter set forth, the Applicants shall not disconnect from or refuse to connect their then-existing or proposed facilities with the facili-ties of any Entity used or proposed to be used for the trans-mission of electric energy in interstate commerce by reason j

of the interstate character of such facilities, and the Applicants will not prevent any Entity with which they main-tain connections fran establishing, maintaining or modifying a connection with facilities used or proposed to be used for j

the transmission of electric energy in interstate commerce by reason of the interstate character of such facilities, pro-vided that, anything in these license conditions to the y.-

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m 5-contrary notwithstanding, any Entity seeking to establish, maintain or modify any connection which could affect the nonjurisdictional status of the Applicants under the Federal Power Act shall have filed an application with and used its best efforts to obtain an order fran the FERC, applicable to the Applicants under Sections 210, 211 and 212 of such Act, requiring the establishment, maintenance or modificaticn of such connection.

In the event that the only significant issue in the ensuing proceeding relates to the Applicants'-

desire to maintain their exemption from jurisdiction under the Federal Power Act, the Applicants agree that they will

~ not unreasonably oppose any such application and agree to pay such Entity' application.preasonable expenses in connection with such In the event such application is denied by a valid crder of the FERC, any continuing refusal by the Appli-cants to establish, maintain or modify such connection with such Entity shall be subject to review by the NRC in accord-ance with the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and the rules and regulations thereunder, to determine whether any such refusal would create or maintain a situation inconsistent with the antitrust laws or the policies thereunder in accord-ance with the standards set forth in Section 105 of such Act; provided that all factual detenninations by the FERC on any cost or system reliability reason (s) for any such refusal shall not be subject to redetennination by the NRC. The burden of proof will be on the Applicants in such NRC pro-ceeding.

(9) The Applicants will, in accordance with applicable law, afford ownership participation in future nuclear generating-facilities and future DC interconnections which they may construct, own, or operate on conditions similar to the foregoing.

(10) The foregoing conditions shall be implemented (1) in a manner consistent with applicable Federal, state and local statutes and regulations, and (2) subject to any regulatory agency having jurisdiction. Nothing herein shall preclude the Applicants from seeking an exemption or other relief to which they may be entitled under applicable law or shall be construed as a waiver of their right to contest the applicability of the license conditions with respect to any factual situation.

JJ This provision shall not cbligate HLP, CPSB, and COA or any other licensee of the South Texas Project to pay the expenses of Central &

Southwest Corporation or any of its subsidiaries with respect to FERC Docket No. EL79-8.

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