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2002 SESSION

025574560
SENATE BILL NO. 684
Offered January 21, 2002
A BILL to require certain electric and gas utilities to furnish information to the State Corporation Commission about Virginia’s energy infrastructure.
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Patron-- Watkins
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Unanimous consent to introduce
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Referred to Committee on Rules
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Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. § 1. Every generator of electric energy operating within the Commonwealth shall provide the State Corporation Commission with the following electric generation data for the time period beginning January 1, 1996, and ending December 31, 2001: (i) an inventory of generating units located within the control area of the utility, including size, location, fuel type, heat rates, and megawatts of each unit, (ii) the historical generating capabilities of each unit compared to actual operating parameters, including hours a unit was offline and reasons therefor, forced and planned curtailment levels, and hourly generation by unit, and (iii) total hourly load in the control area compared to the total hourly load in Virginia.

§ 2. Every incumbent electric utility, as defined in § 56-576 of the Code of Virginia, shall provide the State Corporation Commission with the following electric transmission data for the time period beginning January 1, 1996, and ending December 31, 2001: (i) individual line transfer capabilities at control area interfaces, (ii) aggregate transfer capabilities, including the degree to which the capabilities were reserved and the actual use of such capabilities, (iii) hours during which bulk transmission facilities were offline and the reasons therefor, (iv) actions taken to relieve transmission overload, and (v) hourly flows into and out of the control areas.

§ 3. Every gas transmission company operating within the Commonwealth shall provide the State Corporation Commission with the following data for the time period beginning January 1, 1996, and ending December 31, 2001: (i) a description and map of each interstate and intrastate gas transmission line and associated facilities in Virginia, (ii) the transmission capability of each facility, including the amount dedicated to Virginia and outside Virginia, (iii) the additional load each pipeline is capable of serving and the aggregate load each company’s facilities are capable of carrying, (iv) the actual gas flows into and out of Virginia for each facility and the aggregate flows into and out of Virginia for all facilities, (v) total gas storage capability located in Virginia and outside Virginia that is dedicated to Virginia load, (vi) operational flow ordered issued and reasons therefor, and (vii) expansion projects planned and the expected capacity enhancements in Virginia resulting from such expansion.

§ 4. Each public utility authorized to furnish natural gas service in Virginia shall provide the State Corporation Commission with the number of requests for curtailment issued by such utility and a description of the reasons therefor, for the time period beginning January 1, 1996, and ending December 31, 2001.

§ 5. The State Corporation Commission shall convene a work group to study the feasibility and effectiveness of collecting the data described in §§ 1 through 4 of this act, or any other data pertaining to Virginia’s energy infrastructure, for periods subsequent to December 31, 2001. The work group shall consist of representatives of electricity generators, incumbent electric utilities, gas transmission companies, gas local distribution companies, State Corporation Commission staff, and other appropriate persons. The Commission shall report the results of the work group’s study to the 2003 Session of the General Assembly.

§ 6. The State Corporation Commission shall not release any of the information collected pursuant to this act; however, this prohibition shall not be construed to prohibit the Commission from releasing such information in the aggregate on an industry-wide, geographic or other basis that does not permit the identification of data specific to a single entity.