Trascript of the public meeting for the proposed Transmission Infrastructure Program

March 23, 2009

Good Afternoon. I will now go on the record. Thank you for attending this public meeting.  I’m John Bremer, with Western’s Office of General Counsel.  I’ll serve as the moderator for today’s meeting.  I’ll depart from my prepared remarks real quickly.  For those folks that are either on the Webcast or on the phone, I do want to provide a telephone number for our IT help desk, which is 720-962-7111.  If anybody’s on the phone, or particularly on the Webcast, and has any technical issues or problems accessing this public meeting, please call that number, again, which is 720-962-7111.

As noticed in the March 4, 2009 Federal Register, Volume 74, Number 41, page 9391.  This meeting is to take your comments on Western’s proposed Transmission Infrastructure Program.  Before we begin taking your comments, LaVerne Kyriss, our Senior Planning Advisor at Western, will provide a brief overview of Western’s proposal.  But first, if you haven’t already signed in, or identified that you wish to speak at this meeting, you can do so right now at the registration table (just outside, at the back of the room).  Copies of the Federal Register notice regarding this program and Western’s related notice, seeking Requests for Interest to identify potential projects and participants, as well as copies of slides of this presentation are also available at the registration table.  This presentation has also been posted on Western’s Web site on the Recovery page.

Additionally, I have some housekeeping information:  Restrooms are located just outside this room to my right.  In the event of a fire or other alarm, please take your belongings with you and evacuate the building as quickly as possible, quietly, safely.  In an emergency, please use doors behind me.

We are here to receive your comments on the proposed program.  This meeting is also being Webcasted and it will also be transcribed.  Western is recording both the audio and video of this meeting, and plans to post a link on the program Website so the public can view an archived copy of the recording.  The camera is trained on this lectern, not on your seats.  If you don’t wish to have your image recorded, you may present your comments in writing.

If you are joining us by Webcast you can listen using your computer speakers.  If you wish to make an oral comment today, please also call in on the conference call line at 800-857-2038, conference code: 62285.  I’ll repeat, 800-857-2038, with the conference code: 62285.  Please note in the comment box on your computer screen that you want to make an oral comment and please mute your phone line until you are called to speak. 

I’ll give more information about the comment process in a few moments.  I guess, it sounds like somebody has, perhaps on the phone lines or on the computer has heeded to my admonition to mute your phone lines.  If muting your phone lines gives us a musical interlude, I please ask that whoever that if you please unmute your phone line, and try to get us off the music for the rest of this meeting today.  I guess it’s hard to tell then what to do there if they have us on hold.  If anyone is online and can doing something about the music, I’m sure people on the phone would appreciate it.  Hello?  I think we have resolved the music problem, thank you. 

Again, I will give more information about the comment process in just a few minutes.

Before that, I’d like to introduce LaVerne Kyriss, with the Administrator’s Office, who will give a background presentation on Western’s proposed Transmission Infrastructure Program.

LaVerne, the lectern is yours.

[John Bremer leaves the lectern]

[LaVerne Kyriss speaks]

Good afternoon, again welcome to Western

This meeting is to take comments on a proposed program prepared in response to direction given by Congress, and the Administration to Western Area Power Administration in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

Section 402 of the Recovery Act authorizes Western’s Administrator to construct, finance, facilitate, plan, operate, maintain and study construction of new or upgraded transmission lines and related facilities with at least one terminus with Western’s service area, and for delivering or facilitating delivery of power generated by renewable energy resources constructed or reasonably expected to be constructed.

This map shows our service territory and our regions within it.  Just for your background.

The proposed program would use authority granted under Section 402 to borrow funds from the U.S. Treasury to accomplish this work.  The Act also called for Western to use a public process to develop the practices and policies to implement this authority.  And that’s why we are having this meeting.

The proposed program’s goals are to identify, prioritize and participate in studying, facilitating, financing, planning, operating, maintaining and constructing new or upgraded transmission facilities and additions that will help bring renewable energy resources to markets.

One objective is to encourage non-federal participation so as to leverage Western’s borrowing authority.

The proposed program consists of several major components:

• Project Funding
• Project Evaluation
• Project Development
• Project Operation and Maintenance
• Project Rates and Repayment

In addition to the required practices and policies, Western identified several principles that will provide overarching guidance.  

They include:

• Ensuring that each project approved for funding using Treasury borrowing authority
• Is in the public interest
• Won’t adversely affect system reliability, operations or other statutory obligation
• Offers a reasonable expectation that the proceeds will be adequate for repayment
• Uses a public process to set rates for Western-owned transmission capacity for new facilities
• Has the necessary capabilities to provide generation-related ancillary services
• Uses proceeds from the project to repay the principle and interest after paying for necessary ancillary services and project operations and maintenance costs.

Western will also ensure the program provides an opportunity for participation of other entities in constructing, financing, owning, facilitating, planning, operating, maintaining or studying construction of new or upgraded transmission lines.

Uses revenues from the projects developed under this authority as the only source of revenue to:

• Repay the associated loan
• Pay ancillary service and O&M expenses
• Credit payments to Western’s existing power systems when they provide the ancillary services
• To maintain appropriate controls to ensure for accounting and repayment, that each transmission line and related facility project under this authority is treated separately and distinctly.

This concludes my presentation and I’ll now turn the proceedings back to John.

[John Bremer speaks]

Thank you, LaVerne.  Turning back to the comment process, I will remind you that a record is being made of this meeting which will be transcribed, so that anyone presenting a comment is asked to speak clearly and distinctly into the microphone.

If you are having trouble hearing a speaker in the room, please signal me.  I’ll advise the speaker accordingly.

Comments will be most useful if they are specific, offer proposals, include suggested changes or methodologies, provide a rationale for your suggestions and refer to the specific section of the proposed program notice.  As moderator, I reserve the right to disallow any comments that are not relevant or germane to today’s meeting.

I will first call speakers in the order in which you registered.  We’ll begin with speakers here in Lakewood and then move to speakers on the conference call line.  If you’re in the room with us, please step up to the microphone at the lectern, and clearly state your name and organization, if you’re representing one, before making your comment.  If you speak on the record here today, it will also help if you could leave a business card at the end of the meeting at the registration desk.  If you read from a prepared text, it is also appreciated if you could leave us a copy of your comments at the registration table.

Please limit your oral comments to 5 minutes so that everyone who wants to speak today may have a chance to be heard.

I will advise you when you have 30 seconds left so you can wrap up.  We’ll repeat this process until everyone who’s present here and registered to speak has had a chance to provide comments.  Then I’ll turn to those who have indicated on the Webcast that they want to present oral comments and ask them to provide their comments, subject to the same time constraints and in the order they registered to speak.  I’ll also see if we have anyone who is on the telephone but not on the Webcast who wants to speak, again subject to the same time limits.

I’ll ask if anyone else wants to speak.  After those people have had a chance to speak, we’ll close the meeting and remind you of when comments are due and how to submit them.

So far, we have here in Lakewood, we have 5 people who’ve requested to speak on the issue today.  Each of you will have 5 minutes to make your presentation.  Again, when you have about 30 seconds remaining, I’ll notify you so you can wrap up.

If there are no questions on the process that we’ll use today, we’ll begin taking your comments.

Our first speaker is Lynn Green.  And I’ll just indicate for convenience that the second speaker that will follow Lynn will be Don Allen.

[Lynn Green, from NatureNet Energy speaks

Thanks John,

There are several veterans today from the Texas Cress case; and in the Texas Cress case we were asked to give similar information about renewable energy projects in a particular and geographic area.  Most of us think that that information is highly confidential.  In the process and timing portion of the request for interest form, it mentions a little bit about the confidentiality procedures.  But in the Texas Cress case we all had to sign a confidentiality agreement, and then there were very clear rules about how to file information in the case, that would remain confidential pursuant to the agreement.  So my suggestion today is that perhaps Western will help develop a confidentiality agreement in clear procedures about how to keep our competitive information confidential in this process, thank you.

[John Bremer speaks] Thank you Lynn.  Next will be Don Allen, followed by Grove Burnet.

[Don Allen speaks] Thank you John. As unaccustomed as I am to saying anything on floor, I thought one had to reserve the right to perhaps ask a question.  But I would say thanks to Western for making the effort.  I know these things come off with a lot of work and you guys have put it in.  I represent Citizens Energy Corporation, nonprofit energy company, based in Boston, and I’m here with another representative of that organization, Joe Malen.  Ultimately we’d like to ask you if there is going to be time today for back and forth to explain a little more about what meant about leveraging your borrowing authority.  That was in a intriguing statement in your Web site, and was in the slides today.  If there’s a chance to hear any feedback from Western today, that’s the topic that we’d like to listen to, and as I say, I had no intention of making comments, but we do appreciate this, thanks.

[John Bremer speaks] Thank you Don, I guess I can make a quick comment that we had envisioned this today as a comment forum, not necessarily with and open information or a dialogue and we don’t have built into the agenda today, a time for an interactive conversation by the group either gathered here or on the Web.

Thank you Tony, thanks again Don.  Next I have Grove Burnett, and following Grove would be Jim Beck.

[Grove Burnett speaks] Mr. Bremer, thank you for the opportunity to speak today.  My name is Grove Burnett, and I am an Environmental Attorney and Consultant.  I live in Santa Fe, New Mexico; today I am working with representing Western Resource Advocates, who are headquartered here in Boulder, and have had a long interest in renewables and their transmission.  We’re going to be submitting extensive written comments by the April 30th deadline.  Today I just wanted to present some general principles that we hope are going to be used in the planning process as we go forward under this very, very pivotal time and project.

The bottom-line is we all know, is that we, if we cannot combat climate change and we can’t do so progressively, without there being really significant additions of utility scale renewable energy resources.

In fact, as I say, I think we are at a very pivotal time here because really to shift to renewables, in our society, the whole proposition hinges on our ability to bring these resources to market.  And, as we know, most of, if not most of the renewable resources, particularly here in the West, are located a long way from population centers, major population centers.  They are, as we say, placed at pendant; the generation of them have to be done on site, and this requires, among other things, are being able to have sufficient capacity, transmission capacity to bring them to market.

At Western Resource Advocates, we have developed a platform of planning principles for transmission power lines here in the West.  And I just briefly want to present those as our foundation for how this project should go forward.  They basically insure that when we built transmission lines/power lines, in connection with this project or any other, we do so to insure that they are, in fact, smart transmission lines.  The first one...the first principle in insuring that is efficiency first.  As we say repeatedly, the smartest transmission line, of course, is the one that does not have to be built.  And this will result if we have a decreasing energy demand in our population and cities.  And if we institute other demand-side measures, this can in fact reduce the need for transmission lines, additional power lines here in the western United States. 

The Western Governors Association has a study from this transmission taskforce that said, with aggressive investments and efficiency, we can eliminate building an additional 1500 linear miles of transmission lines, of the projected 4,000 that we are projected to need to bring renewables to market.  That’s a 30 percent reduction in the number of miles we need to build transmission lines.  So that’s our first principle. 

Our second one is to maximize, of course, the power grid.  Here in the United States we already have 100,000 miles of high-voltage power lines.  And I have spent much of my career not only seeking to regulate the sources of the electricity that’s generated that goes on these lines, but also often combating the placement, the siting and the building of transmission lines.  So before we build any new line, we hope and trust that the planners are going to evaluate cutting edge engineering technologies that are available in the upgrading in our existing transmission capacity, and for the existing grid, i.e., more efficient power lines.  These are technological solutions that are available to us, and they too can reduce the need to build new and unnecessary power lines.  Step 3 of our 4 points, it is to connect, cleaner renewable energy resources.  So, when we have newer upgraded power lines, we hope and are working for that they will be planned and they will be configured in such a way to fully facilitate the development of clean and renewable energy resources. The Western Renewable Energy Zone Initiative that has been developed will help us identify the best areas in the West for renewable energy production and transmission.

And then, finally 4, finally our step 4, is that when energy corridors are built they should be smart, they should be protecting the land and the wildlife.  And building them when we have to they must avoid, of course, the showcases of our western landscape, our national parks, the monuments, wildlife refuges, the wild places that are still left on this beautiful landscape of ours.  I don’t think that westerners are going to stand to have these public treasures criss-crossed by new transmission lines.  They haven’t stood for it in the past and I don’t think they are going to stand for it now.

So in summary, we urge the planners here to exploit demand-side management and existing corridor upgrades to the maximum extent possible, before we start building new lines to areas of high renewable potential. Again the smartest transmission line is the one we don’t have to build.  I have seen in the past, and I have no doubt that this will happen again if the planning and implementation of transmission lines devolves into protracted battles, either at the regulatory level or the legal level. We’re going to be in trouble because renewables simply will not scale up fast enough to have an impact on climate change, or develop their potential as a primary source of our energy. A simple renewable, simply won’t have a chance to take hold.  Investors, in that case, will fall back on our fossil fuel expansions, and we won’t be able to bring the renewables to market.

So in summary, we are asking for a very open and transparent process here. In this planning and siting of transmission lines, no one’s going to support transmission if it also is carrying conventional coal resources.  There’s going to be strong resistance, as there always has been in communities in the west, to proposals either for upgrades or for new lines that combine renewable energy with the old conventional coal resources on the transmission lines.  These are some of the basic principles that we hope to see implemented here in a process, again, that is open and transparent, and we appreciate the opportunity to present that, thank you.

[John Bremer speaks] Thank you Mr. Burnett, next will be Jim Beck, Mr. Jim Beck, with TANC followed by Jerry Vaninetti.

[Jim Beck from TANC speaks] Thank you Mr. Bremer and other, apparently I have been inspired some here, somebody on the phone.  I have a couple of brief commentsj.

I am Jim Beck, I’m the General Manager with the Transmission Agency of Northern California, we are a joint action agency with the collection of about 15 publicly owned utilities, who formed to build transmission.  We are attempting, as we speak, to build a new transmission line in California.  We believe in Western’s proposed actions here, that their interests could be further met if they also encourage proposers, being commenters to identify preferred partnership structure, where that’s meaningful and reasonable, and we encourage Western to be very flexible with respect to partnership structures.  That it does consider with respect to project evaluation, we believed Western should give preference, first preference to those projects, which have multiple partners, multiple participants in both of these, so as to help Western’s ability to leverage its funds in this program, with respected project evaluation as well. We believe Western should be very open and transparent to use the same terms that one did, with respect to any additional criteria that are used for evaluating the projects, that is suggested under the Policies and Practices, Number 1, Section C in the FRN.  And finally we’re at the other comment which was respect to confidentiality, to the extent there is a way to keep business sensitive information from the public, and we do intend as well to issue to make comments in the proceedings. We generally believe the least amount of restrictions that can be placed on these projects through this process, or any process, is the right approach. We thank you for the opportunity to comment and we will be commenting further.

[John Bremer speaks] Thank you Mr. Beck, the last commenter that I have signed up here in the room Jerry Vaninetti.

[Jerry Vaninetti speaks] 

Thank you, thank you for pronouncing my name right, it doesn’t happen very often.  I’m here representing a number of parties, first and foremost is Trans-Elect development company; we’re an independent transmission developer.  I’d also like to comment on some of our partners on a number of our projects--the Wyoming-Colorado Intertie, which is a partnership involving ourselves, Western Area Power Administration, and the Wyoming Infrastructure Authority. 

I’m also here to represent Pipelines Express Initiative, which is a partnership of 7 utilities throughout the Rocky Mountain states, as well as three state transmission authorities in the western Colorado intertie.  On behalf of all those parties, and a number of other parties, we commend Congress, we commend the Obama administration, and we commend Western Area Power Administration for moving forward with this initiative to provide 3.25 billion in Borrowing Authority, to Western.

This follows up on an effort to undertake, and I think, by AWEA, America Wind Energy Association and others who have advocated for a number of years, for Western to take a more active role in developing renewables, who’s traditional role has been focused on hydro, just so happens that the hydro and a lot of renewable resources, both wind and solar, and some of the other renewable resources are co-located so there may be some opportunities to take advantage of those, that diverse resource mix, that is focused on those different kinds of renewable resources. 

Lastly, I’m very much involved with Western Governors Association RES process, I also co-chair the Economic Modeling Committee, and certainly this process is very much focused on development of renewables, development of transmission lines throughout the Rocky Mountain states largely within Western Area Power Administrations footprints, so I see a perfect storm of things aligning here. 

So those are, I guess my introductory comments, I really only have one question I’d like to raise.  I realize this isn’t a dialogue situation.  I recognize from Tim Meeks’ testimony before the House Committee about a week ago, some of the materials in the legislation, that there is a clear distinction between Western Area Power Administration’s preference customers, and this new borrowing authority, in no shape or form as we understand it, affects their rights or their rates; that’s a really good thing to separate those two.  That kind of drives my question.  It hasn’t been addressed in any of the things I’ve seen thus far.  I understand that Western would be empowered to develop new transmission projects, to participate in new projects and that there is a process for public input on rate setting, to determine what Western’s appropriate rates should be. 

As it stands now, Western’s preference customers pay for transmission services on the basis of the cost they have incurred, Western has incurred, in developing transmission.  As you develop new transmission, spend new money on transmission, what process will go into determining what those rates are?  Because just building transmission only addresses part of the trot, or the issue.  The second issue is, how are these rates formed?  I’m not suggesting that Western subsidize transmission rates, although I’m sure a lot of people would like that, but it would be at some point in time useful for all of us to know how those rates will be established, and how the process will be to determine what those rates are, and ultimately, when they are formed.  With that I close, thank you.

[John Bremer speaks] Thank you Mr. Vaninetti.  That’s all the folks that I had sign up in the room here today, who wished to speak.  I’m going to look now out to our IT folks, and see whether or not we had anybody on the Webcast, who had might have indicated that they wanted to make a comment on the record.  Looks like I have one so, I’m going to open up the phone line, and ask that the person if they can identify themselves, again if they could identify who they represent, and then go ahead and make their comments.  If you’re out there, watching me on the Webcast, listening to me, if you indicated that you wanted to make a comment on the record here, this afternoon, I’d ask that you unmute your phone line, and go ahead and identify yourself, and make your comment.

I understand the individual is a Mr. Michael Tocher…are you on the line?  [pause] Michael Tocher?   [pause]

Do we have anybody else on the Webcast, at this time who’d like to make a comment on the record?  [pause]  Do I have anybody who is one the phone that might not be on the Webcast, who would like to make a comment on the record?

[John Bremer speaks]  Ok Mr. Bagley we can hear you in the room.  If you are representing anybody, could you please identify that for us, and we’re ready for you to make your comment.

[Kenneth Bagley speaks] I have three hats on for this call, first being the Project Manager for the Harkeyvar Transmission Project, which is a proposed transmission project in Western Arizona that will tie the western 230 system to the Vetters-Palaruny 500 system; also as a consultant to the Central Arizona Water Conservation District, which has O&M responsibilities for the Central Arizona Project canal; and thirdly, on behalf of Solar Mission which is a renewable redeveloper in western Arizona. 

First question I have is in regards to the Federal Register notice, indicating statements of interest that could be joint.  Again, I understand in your response to Mr. Allen, this is not a Q&A, so please take this question that I would appreciate Western’s response to it sometime in the future, but, withregard to the joint project, would Western prefer a joint submittal from entities that may have mutual interest in a project that could be accommodated on a single transmission facility or upgrade?

The second question I have or would like clarification from Western, and I appreciate the intent that any projects that are funded under this authorization will have to be self-sufficient, but there are a number of system upgrades in Western’s Parker-Davis system in western Arizona that are already included in their 10 year plan, but due to lack of appropriations from the Federal Government, these have been extended out for a number of years.  There are some projects that could accommodate renewable energy in western Arizona, that will require upgrades that are consistent with Western’s 10 year plan for the Parker-Davis system.  Is it appropriate, or is there a means in which some kind of allocation can be justified? That we, the entities, proposing upgrades to accommodate renewable generation, verses upgrades that are already needed by Western under existing 10 year plan?  That’s it, thank you.

[John Bremer speaks]  Thank you.  I’ll go back to the Web.  I checked with our IT folks, I understand it was a Michael Tocher, I’m not sure I got this name quite as well as I got Mr. Vaninetti’s.  But I think he also provided a written comment, when he asked to speak, so I’ll assure Mr. Tocher that the email the comment, the question he submitted over the Webcast will be included with all the other questions and comments that we’ve received here today.  If he does not wish to clarify or make any other remarks related to that comment, we’ll just take that and add it to everything else that we will take into the record.  Clarifying that, I’m looking to the IT folks, and I don’t see that we ask have anybody else asking a comment through the Web.  I’ll turn to the phones again and see if there is anybody who is just on the phone this afternoon.  Again if you’d like to identify yourself and make a comment, we can take it at this time.

[Ron Cornish speaks] I’d like to make a comment.  Can you hear me?

[John Bremer speaks]  Yes we can, again, if you can identify yourself and whoever you’re representing.

[Ron Cornish speaks] Hi, my name is Ron Cornish; I’m with the Center for American Indian Economic Development, based out of Flagstaff, Arizona, and Northern Arizona University.  And I just want to make a general comment, that the long-range planning is so important for what we have here that the Western Governors Association is doing with the REZ’s (Renewable Energy Zones) is critical for 20-30 year planning. The tribes need to be contacted and included in the process, and yet sometimes we’re a little slow responding, some of that is the nature of meeting only once a month, by the time notices get out we are a little slow to be able to act immediately, but since so many transmission lines go through Indian reservations, sometimes without any input by the tribes, it’s a very delicate situation that to have long-range planning, developers, financers coming into place and saying, “oh, by the way tribes, we’re cutting through here.” 

There’s more to the operation of getting the land then that, but in economic development, the partnerships that we’re talking about outlined here, those are great opportunities. I would invite transmission developers, Western Power and the others, to do an outreach to the tribes.  We’re learning as fast as we can, Western, out of the Phoenix area, has been doing very good with sharing information, but we’re late to the game. 

But since so much line does go through the reservations, please, include us in the planning as best you can.  And just note, I asked and petitioned to include some of the Native American tribes in some of the long range planning.  A lot of us have, a bunch of tribes have very good natural resources, either wind or solar particularly the Arizona regions that I’m in.  We’ve run into situations that I’m told there’s no access for your plan/project because of transmission restraints, but if you’re doing long range upgrade planning, include us in it.  We’ll be glad to bring money to the table, we have workforces that we’re are working and developing.  We want to be an active player in this planning, so please include us.  That’s my statement, thank you.

[John Bremer speaks] Thank you, if I understood Mr. Cornish, I think, if you could just identify yourself again and it might also help, for the record, if you could spell your last name, and just repeat again who you are representing.

[Ron Cornish speaks] Yes sir, again, my name is Ron Cornish, C-o-r-n-i-s-h, I’m based at the Northern Arizona University, at the Center for American Indian Economic Development, or CAIED. 

[John Bremer speaks] I think we got that, we had a beep in the phone while you were identifying yourself.

OK, Cornish is the last name, C-o-r-n-i-s-h, and CAIED is based at the Northern Arizona University.

We did get that, thank you very much we appreciate your comments.  Again, I’ll turn to the phone.  Do we have anyone else who would like to make a comment?  I think we might have, we might have somebody that either has a mute or a hold on the phone lines we’re getting a repetitive beeping noise that’s coming through again, so if you can check your mute or your hold, we would appreciate it.  Again is there anyone else there on the line who would like to offer a comment this afternoon? [Inaudible noise] [Laughter] I’ll take that as a no.  I will turn back before we close this, I’ll turn back to the phones to see if there’s anyone else. 

At this point, I will turn back to everybody else in this room based either on comments/questions that you have heard from other commenters this afternoon.  Is there anyone else?  I realize we reserved, there were a number of people when they signed in that reserved the right to speak, if they wish.  I’ll call forward anyone now, who’d like to do that, is there anyone?  Why don’t I start at the front sir?  And again, if you could just introduce yourself.

[Brian Smalls speaks] My names Brian Smalls, I’m with Competitive File Ventures, I would just like to reiterate Lynn’s concerns about confidentiality of information that you are requesting in the RFI and the SOI. As a Project Developer and a potential builder and operator, we put a lot of value in that information we’re collecting per the investment.  So, for it to be public, is not something you are going to get a lot of information out of us on, some meaningful information.  So if you follow Lynn’s advice and hold this in confidentiality, then we could respond to you in a meaningful way.  That’s it.

[John Bremer speaks] Thank you.  I think it was Lynn would like to join us up here again. 

[Lynn Green of NatureNet Energy speaks]  We’re all very curious what to expect after we file and what the timeframe would be and what kind of response Western anticipates giving to those of us who file and in what timeframe?

[John Bremer speaks] Thank you Lynn.  I’m not sure I can give you all that information here this afternoon, but at least I can give you some information on how this process is going to closeout.  But I’m not sure I can answer those questions for you entirely this afternoon.  I can, I guess, ask if there is anyone else out there who would like to provide a comment, Sir?

[Ron Lenfest speaks] My name’s Rod Lenfert, I’m with Seabreeze Pacific Regional Transmission System, and I was a little bit reluctant to stand up here because I too have a question of sorts, of typically those developing a prioritization process, are not the same individuals as those that are doing project review. And my question to you, for not answering at this moment, but going forward, is should we be addressing recommendations with regard to prioritization separately from our specific project proposals.  And to who should those prioritization comments go?

[John Bremer speaks] Thank you Mr. Lenfert, I think we’re looking for all; I’ll try to answer this one, and I think that we’re looking for comments on the entire program.  I think, prioritization, I think, if I understood your question, prioritization, I think we’re looking for comments on that, and every other aspect, really, of our program. So we look forward to, if you have, not necessarily today, but if you have written comments we’d like to submit on that, we appreciate it.  I look then to anyone else here in the room.

[Bill Wright speaks] My names Bill Wright, with Xcel Energy, and I just have a question, that at some point, or just a couple that we would like to get an answer to.  The first one is, we’re interested in finding out if WAPA will loan money to other parties to construct transmission projects and it’s not quite clear if they do, who will own those projects, so we would like to get a response to that. And then some clarification on where we can find the comments in the presentation that was given out today, where, how we can obtain the website, or wherever that information will be located at some future date whenever everything’s finished.

[John Bremer speaks] Thank you Mr. Wright, let’s see if I can answer, I’m not sure if I can answer, the first question that you asked about the loaning of funds, I seem to be better today at handling more procedural questions with the process.  Maybe I can answer your closing question about where you can get this information.  If you would go to our website: www.wapa.gov, you should find there a copy of the presentation, the slides that we made, I think the link is recovery.  So it would be wapa.gov/recovery, and you can find these slides, this presentation.  And I think I indicated earlier that it’s our intent here to take a recording, that we are making, and with some technological luck and some skill from our IT folks, we’ll have a copy of this entire presentation the video and the audio from today’s meeting, and that should be again, at that same website, that same subline.

[Paul Manson speaks] I’ll look to the room again.  It seems like the front is more active this afternoon.  Sir, if you would like to come forward?

Thank you, Paul Manson, Seabreeze Pacific Regional Transmission System, seeking clarification largely on the request for proposal stage, as to what part competitive solicitation plays as opposed to sole source.

[John Bremer speaks] Thank you Mr. Manson, again, that’s probably one of those more subsident questions I can’t answer this afternoon, but I will take your comment into the record and consider it.  I’ll look then to anyone else in the room this afternoon.  I don’t see anyone else in the room, so I’ll turn back to the telephones.  Anybody on the phone lines this afternoon again who’d like to make a comment?  Anyone on the phones? Anyone on the phones who would like to make a comment?

I’ll take that as a no.  I’ll look now to our IT folks, anyone else from the Webcast.  Well not having anyone through technology, I’ll give it one last go in the room.

Seeing no one else, I’m now going to close the meeting this afternoon.  I want to thank you for joining us today to provide oral comments on Western’s proposed Transmission Infrastructure Program.

Western encourages you to submit comments via e-mail. It should be easier for you and it speeds the transfer of comments into the database for analysis and up to the Website for public review. While electronic submissions are preferred, individuals may also …..Oh, I’m sorry….

(Tom Graves asks a question that's inaudible on the tape).

[John Bremer speaks] No, I’m sorry Tom, Mr. Graves, I can tell you, and I’ll probably get to some dates here, that relate primarily to the closure of the public process.  As with most, those of you who are familiar with, public processes, that there’s a notice under the Administrative Procedure Act, that are conducted through public meetings like this, this process has been held open, this public comment period is being held open for 30 days.  The comment period is going to end April 3rd, and after that, Western will take all the comments that were received here today, both from everyone here in the room and those who gave them over the phone. I understand again we may have had a couple people that provided them through essential email and through the Webcast.  We also expect, certainly, to get considerable comments in writing either through email and delivery through the mail.  We’re going to take all those comments, and we’re going to evaluate them.  We’ll do that, you can probably guess, in a very timely fashion.  We’ve moved out on this program very quickly, and with a lot of due diligence, and I can expect, Mr. Graves, that we will continue to do that.  As the process, as you may be familiar with the processes in the past, a public process such as this under the APA.  We will issue another Federal Register notice, that will set forth all the, synopsize the comments and respond to them, and set forth with some much greater detail, the layout, the details in much greater detail of our Transmission Infrastructure Program. 

Again, I think I made the comment, that while we prefer your written comments to come in by e-mail, we’re here to take those by hand if you’d like.  We’ll also take them by mail.  Comments, again, as I explained are due by April 3rd.

If you do submit them by email the address is t-x-p-r-o-g-r-a-m, txprogram that is @wapa.gov.  or by mail to Western at Post Office Box 281213, Lakewood, CO  80228-8213.  Again for email that’s txprogram@wapa.gov.  Mail is to the Western Area Power Administration at Post Office Box 281213, Lakewood, CO  80228-8213.  These addresses are also listed in the Federal Register notice. All comments received by April 3 will be considered in preparing the final program.  Comments submitted after April 3 will be considered to the degree possible.

Many of you are also aware that Western issued a related Federal Register notice on March 4th. It’s on the same page as the Federal Register, as the same page the Federal Register that notice, the program, so the citation’s are the same.  In that notice, Western is seeking interest from any entity or entities interested in identifying a proposed transmission project, primarily in Western’s service territory, and/or desiring to participate with Western and possibly others by financing, constructing or owning facilities or acquiring transmission rights or entering into long-term transmission service agreements on that project.

If you are interested in providing a submission, please review that notice and the Request for Information which is available again, on Western’s Web site the address I gave earlier, www.wapa.gov.  The due date for these submissions is also April 3rd.  Western will accept statements of interest submitted by e-mail to, this address is different from the email address I just gave; txrfi@wapa.gov or by mail to the same address, Western at P.O. Box 281213, Lakewood, CO  80228.

I remind those who spoke to leave a business card and/or copy of their presentation at the registration desk.

Again, thank you for your attendance, and for your attention. I’ll now go off the record.