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South Dakota Public Utilities Commission Meeting
October 15, 2019, at 1:30 P.M. CDT
Room 413, Capitol Building
Pierre, South Dakota
NOTE: Docket participants who wish to join this meeting by conference call should contact the Commission at 605-773-3201 by 10:00 a.m. CDT on Tuesday, October 15, 2019, to reserve a phone line. Lines are limited and assigned on a first come, first served basis, subject to possible reassignment to accommodate persons who must appear in a proceeding. Ultimately, if you wish to participate in docket discussion at the Commission Meeting and a line is not available, you may have to appear in person.
NOTE: To listen to the Commission Meeting live please go to the PUC’s website www.puc.sd.gov and click on the LIVE link on the home page. The Commission requests persons who will only be listening to proceedings and not actively appearing in a case listen via the webcast to free phone lines for those who have to appear. The Commission meetings are archived on the PUC’s website under the Commission Actions tab. Click on “Commission Meeting Archives,” to access the recordings.
NOTE: Notice is further given to persons with disabilities that this Commission meeting is being held in a physically accessible place. If you have special needs, please notify the Commission and we will make all necessary arrangements.
AGENDA OF COMMISSION MEETING
Administration
1. Approval of Minutes of the Commission Meeting Held on October 1, 2019 (Staff: Joy Lashley)
Consumer Reports
1. Status Report on Consumer Utility Inquiries and Complaints Received by the Commission (Consumer Affairs: Deb Gregg)
Electric
On September 14, 2018, Energy of Utah and Fall River Solar, LLC (Fall River Solar) filed a Complaint against Black Hills Power Inc. dba Black Hills Energy (BHE) for determination of avoided cost pursuant to the Public Utility Regulatory Policy Act of 1978 (PURPA). The Complaint relates to a planned 80-megawatt solar facility Fall River Solar is developing in Fall River County, South Dakota. BHE filed an answer on October 4, 2018. On August 12, 2019, Fall River Solar filed a Notice of Depositions Pursuant to SDCL 15-6-30(b)(6). On September 25, 2019, BHE filed a Motion to Quash Portions of Energy of Utah, LLC and Fall River Solar, LLC’s Notice of Deposition Pursuant to SDCL 15-6-30(b)(6) and for a Protective Order.
TODAY, shall the Commission grant BHE’s Motion to Quash? AND, shall the Commission grant BHE a protective order? OR, how shall the Commission proceed?
On January 30, 2019, Crowned Ridge Wind, LLC (Crowned Ridge or Applicant) filed an application for a permit to construct a wind energy conversion facility to be located in Grant County and Codington County, South Dakota (Project). The Project would be situated on approximately 53,186 acres in the townships of Waverly, Rauville, Leola, Germantown, Troy, Stockholm, Twin Brooks, and Mazeppa, South Dakota. The total installed capacity of the Project would not exceed 300 megawatts of nameplate capacity. The proposed Project includes up to 130 wind turbine generators, access roads to turbines and associated facilities, underground 34.5-kilovolt (kV) electrical collector lines, underground fiber-optic cable, a 34.5-kV to 345-kV collection substation, one permanent meteorological tower, and an operations and maintenance facility. The Project will utilize the Crowned Ridge 34-mile 230-kV generation tie line and a new reactive power compensation substation to transmit the generation from the Project’s collector substation to the Project’s point of interconnection located at the Big Stone South 230-kV Substation, which is owned by Otter Tail Power Company. Applicant has executed a power purchase agreement with Northern States Power Company (NSP) to sell NSP the full output of the Project. The Project is expected to be completed in 2020. Applicant estimates the total cost of the Project to be $400 million. The Commission issued a Final Decision and Order Granting Permit to Construct Facility; Notice of Entry (Final Order) on July 26, 2019. Condition 45 of the Final Order requires Applicant and staff to develop, within 90 days of the issuance of the Final Order, a mitigation plan for prairie grouse leks in case impacts to leks are found during post-construction monitoring. On October 3, 2019, Applicant filed a letter requesting a 60-day extension to develop the mitigation plan required in Condition 45.
TODAY, shall the Commission grant Applicant’s request for a 60-day extension to develop the mitigation plan required in Condition 45 of the Final Order? OR, how shall the Commission proceed?
On June 17, 2019, the Commission received an Application for a Facility Permit (Application) from Tatanka Ridge Wind, LLC (Tatanka or Applicant), a subsidiary of Avangrid Renewables, LLC. Tatanka proposes to construct a wind energy facility to be located in Deuel County, South Dakota, known as the Tatanka Ridge Wind Project (Project). The Project would be situated within an approximately 27,900-acre project area, located near the towns of Toronto and Brandt (Project Area). The Project Area is in Blom, Brandt, Grange, Hidewood, and Scandinavia Townships. The total installed capacity of the Project would be approximately 155 megawatts (MW) of nameplate capacity. The proposed Project includes up to 56 wind turbine generators, access roads to turbines and associated facilities, above/underground electrical collector lines, communication systems, a collection substation, one permanent meteorological tower, less than 0.5-mile long 345-kV gen-tie transmission line, and an operations and maintenance facility. The Project would interconnect to the regional electric grid via the Astoria substation, a new Otter Tail Power Company interconnection substation scheduled to be operational in 2020, located in Scandinavia Township. Tatanka has entered into two purchase power agreements, one with Google for 98 MW and one with Dairyland Power Cooperative for the balance. The Project is expected to be completed in 2020. Applicant estimates the total construction cost to be $216 million. A public input hearing was held on August 7, 2019. On October 4, 2019, Applicant and staff filed a Settlement Stipulation and Joint Motion for Approval of Settlement Stipulation. The Settlement Stipulation resolves all issues with the exception of the funding for the decommissioning of the Project.
TODAY, shall the Commission grant the Joint Motion for Approval of Settlement Stipulation and approve the terms and conditions stipulated therein? OR, how shall the Commission proceed?
On August 29, 2019, the Commission received a filing from Northern States Power Company dba Xcel Energy (Xcel) for approval of tariff revisions for small power production and cogeneration rates. Xcel requests approval of revised rate sheets for the Occasional Delivery Energy Service tariff and the Time of Delivery Energy Service tariff. Xcel’s proposed revisions reflect a slight decrease in energy payment and no change in the monthly metering charge for the Occasional Delivery Energy Service rate sheet. The proposed Time of Delivery Energy Service rate sheet is revised to reflect energy and capacity payments based on Xcel’s 2019 avoided costs projection, with no change in the monthly metering charge.
TODAY, shall the Commission approve Xcel Energy’s tariff revisions, effective January 1, 2020?
On October 1, 2019, the Commission received a Petition by Northern States Power Company dba Xcel Energy (Xcel) for approval of its 2020 Infrastructure Rider Project Eligibility and Factor Update. Xcel requests approval of project eligibility for one project included in the Settlement Agreement Exhibit C not already included in the rider, project eligibility for two additional wind projects consistent with SDCL 49-34A-73 and the Settlement Stipulation in Docket GE17-003, the Infrastructure Rider Tracker Report and true-up for the 2019 revenue requirements, 2020 Infrastructure Rider revenue requirements of $19.3 million, an updated Infrastructure Rider Adjustment Factor of $0.008873, proposed revisions to the Infrastructure Rider tariff sheet, and proposed customer notice. Xcel proposes a January 1, 2020, effective date. Xcel states the average bill impact for a residential customer using 750 kWh per month will be an estimated $6.65, a $1.51 increase over the 2019 rate.
TODAY, shall the Commission assess a filing fee in the amount of up to $250,000 to account for actual expenses incurred in review of this filing commencing from the filing date?
Telecommunications
On August 22, 2019, the Commission received a letter from Fusion Cloud Services, LLC fka Birch Communications, LLC requesting approval of its Switched Access Services Tariff. On October 2, 2019, Birch filed revisions to the tariff addressing concerns from Commission staff. Birch requests an effective date of October 15, 2019.
TODAY, shall the Commission approve Fusion Cloud Services, LLC’s Switched Access Services Tariff No. 1?
Items for Commission Discussion
Public Comment
Individuals who wish to make public comments to the commission may do so in person during this time. All who offer public comment are requested to sign in at the commission meeting. Time limits for comments may be determined at the discretion of the commission.
Announcements
- The PUC office will be closed Monday, October 14, 2019, in observance of the Native American Day holiday.
- PUC commissioners and staff will meet with representatives of Otter Tail Power Co. on Wednesday, October 16, 2019, at 8:00 a.m. CDT in Room 413 the State Capitol Building, Pierre, South Dakota. The agenda includes discussion about the impact of the Regional Haze Rule on Coyote Station, status of current large projects and a resource plan update.
- Commissioners and staff will meet with representatives of Northern Natural Gas on Wednesday, October 16, 2019, at 1:00 p.m. CDT in Room 413 at the State Capitol Building, Pierre, South Dakota. The agenda is to discuss a rate case and business update and a recap of the company’s winter 2018-2019 activities.
- The next regular commission meeting will be Wednesday, October 30, 2019, at 9:30 a.m. CDT in Room 423 at the State Capitol Building, Pierre, South Dakota.
- The PUC office will be closed Monday, November 11, 2019, in observance of the Veterans Day holiday.
- Commission meetings are scheduled for November 12 and 26, 2019.
/s/Cindy Kemnitz .
Cindy Kemnitz
Finance Manager
PUC Email
October 8, 2019
