The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has conditionally approved a series of changes to the California Independent System Operator Corp.'s (CAISO) generator interconnection procedures, Akin & Gump reports.
The time for interconnection agreement negotiations was increased from 90 calendar days to 120 calendar days. An interconnection customer may reduce the megawatts of its generating facility by up to 5%, for any reason, between the effective date of its large-generator interconnection agreement and the commercial operation date.
An interconnection customer also may request a size reduction of greater than 5% if the reduction is due to circumstances beyond the customer's control. Such capacity reductions do not operate to reduce the cost responsibility of the interconnection customer for network upgrades.
Issuance of a revised Phase I interconnection report to address a ‘substantial error’ will extend the deadlines for an interconnection customer to post financial security. A ‘substantial error’ is one that overstates or understates the interconnection customer's cost responsibility for either network upgrades or participating transmission owner interconnection facilities by more than 5% or $1 million – whichever is greater.
For transmission owner interconnection facilities, the financial security required will be based on the lowest of three screens, with a hard cap on the total amount required. The third posting of interconnection financial security may be parsed into separate and discrete components corresponding to discrete phases of construction.
The achievement of commercial operation is not the sole criterion for determining an interconnection customer's eligibility for repayment of network upgrade costs. Repayment may be withheld until all network upgrades necessary for the completed phase of a generation project to meet its desired level of deliverability are in service.
