Federal Register: March 13, 2001 (Vol. 66, No. 49, Pages 14562-14564)             

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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Energy Information Administration


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request

AGENCY: Energy Information Administration (EIA), Department of Energy, 
(DOE).

ACTION: Agency information collection activities: proposed collection; 
comment request.

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SUMMARY: The EIA is soliciting comments concerning proposed revisions 
and a three-year extension to December 31, 2004, for the Form EIA-767, 
"Steam-Electric Plant Operation and Design Report."

DATES: Written comments must be filed on or before May 14, 2001. If you 
anticipate difficulty in submitting comments within that period, 
contact the person listed below as soon as possible.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to John G. Colligan, Energy Information 
Administration, Electric Power Division, EI-53.1, Forrestal Building, 
U.S. Department of Energy, Washington, DC 20585-0650. Alternatively, 
John Colligan may be contacted by telephone at (202) 287-1756, FAX at 
(202) 287-1934, or e-mail at jcolliga@eia.doe.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or 
copies of the form and instructions should be directed to John Colligan 
at the address listed above. The Form EIA-767 is available on EIA's web 
site: http://www.eia.doe.gov/fuelelectric.html.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

II. Current Actions

III. Request for Comments

I. Background

    The Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974 (Pub. L. No. 93-275, 
15 U.S.C. 761 et seq.) and the DOE Organization Act (Pub. L. No. 95-91, 
42 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.) require the EIA to carry out a centralized, 
comprehensive, and unified energy information program. This program 
collects, evaluates, assembles, analyzes, and disseminates information 
on energy resource reserves, production, demand, technology, and 
related economic and statistical information. This information is used 
to assess the adequacy of energy resources to meet near and longer term 
domestic demands.
    The EIA, as part of its effort to comply with the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13, 44 U.S.C. Chapter 35), provides 
the general public and other Federal agencies with opportunities to 
comment on collections of energy information conducted by or in   
conjunction with the EIA. Any comments received help the EIA to prepare  
data requests that maximize the utility of the information collected, 
and to assess the impact of collection requirements on the public. Also,   
the EIA will later seek approval by the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) of the collections under section 3507(a) of the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995.
    The Form EIA-767, "Steam-Electric Plant Operation and Design 
Report," is a mandatory form filed annually by fossil-fueled steam-
electric power generating plants with a combined nameplate rating of 50 
(MW) or greater. The EIA-767 collects operational data from fossil and 
nuclear electric power plants. These data are compiled and published in 
several EIA publications.

II. Current Actions

    The EIA will request OMB approval of: (a) A three-year extension of 
collection authority through December 31, 2004 and (b) the revisions 
described below. The proposed changes reflect the current highly 
competitive state of the electric power industry as a whole and the 
power generators in particular. EIA recognizes that its information 
collections must continue to adapt as the industry changes.
    EIA has completed an extensive review and update of the electric 
power survey collection series. The form presented here is the result 
of that task which includes input from all sectors of the electric 
power industry. Electric generation and sales continue the trend toward 
open competition. The degree of competition is not uniform throughout 
the country at this time, but continues to grow sporadically, as 
reported by electric power data suppliers. With the increase in open 
competition among generators there is a corresponding need for 
protection from disclosure of individually-identifiable commercially 
sensitive information. Along with form changes, the EIA is proposing a 
revision to the commercially sensitive data elements collected on the 
Form EIA-767 which will be treated as confidential.
    The Form EIA-767, "Steam-Electric Plant Operation and Design 
Report," collects plant operational data. Form EIA-767 will be filed 
annually by all existing and planned fossil-fueled electric generating 
plants with a combined nameplate rating of 50 megawatts or greater. A 
significant change to this form is an increase in the reporting 
threshold from 10 megawatts to 50 megawatts. The frame of the EIA-767 
has been extended to include both regulated and unregulated generators. 
Also, a new Schedule 4D, "Boiler Plant Information, Nitrogen Oxide 
Controls" was created in order for all respondents to provide nitrogen 
oxide control information on a single schedule. Items 1 and 2 of 
Schedule 4D were previously found on Schedule 4C, and were completed 
only by generators 100 megawatts and greater; Schedule 4D, items 3, 4a, 
4b, and 5 are new data elements. As a result of these and other 
additions (one data element on Schedule 4A regarding analysis method 
for primary fuel type, and three data elements on Schedule 9 regarding 
exit temperature of flue gas), a total of 8 data elements were added. 
However, 28 data elements were deleted, resulting in an overall net 
reduction of approximately 20 elements on the Form EIA-767.
    With regard to confidential treatment of information reported to 
EIA on the electric power surveys, EIA is proposing changes in what 
elements will be treated as confidential and not released in 
individually-identifiable form. As the level of generation competition 
increases, so does the concern for the disclosure of confidential data. 
EIA is aware of these concerns regarding full disclosure of trade 
secrets. EIA is continuously monitoring the industry through the 
electric power survey system. Following are the EIA-767 survey data 
elements that will be treated as confidential and will not be disclosed 
at the identifiable individual facility level. Elements that are 
currently treated as confidential by EIA on the Form EIA-767 are marked 
by asterisks. EIA is proposing additional confidential data elements 
which are listed below:

a--Planned equipment*, planned plant changes*, planned retirement 
   dates*, and fuel projections*;
b--Heat rates*;
c--Fuel consumption;
d--Fuel quality;
e--Financial data;
f--Thermal output.
The EIA-767 form and instructions will address the specific data 
elements that will be treated as confidential.

III. Request for Comments

    Prospective respondents and other interested parties should comment 
on the actions discussed in item II. The following guidelines are 
provided to assist in the preparation of comments.

General Issues

    A. Is the proposed collection of information necessary for the 
proper performance of the functions of the agency and does the 
information have practical utility? Practical utility is defined as the 
actual usefulness of information to or for an agency, taking into 
account its accuracy, adequacy, reliability, timeliness, and the 
agency's ability to process the information it collects.
    B. What enhancements can be made to the quality, utility, and 
clarity of the information to be collected?

As a Potential Respondent to the Request for Information

    A. Are the instructions and definitions clear and sufficient? If 
not, which instructions need clarification?
    B. Can the information be submitted by the due date?
    C. Public reporting burden for this collection is estimated to 
average 83.16 hours per response, previous burden was 84.00 hours per 
response. In your opinion, how accurate is this estimate?
    D. The agency estimates that the only cost to a respondent is for 
the time it will take to complete the collection. Will a respondent 
incur any start-up costs for reporting, or any recurring annual costs 
for operation, maintenance, and purchase of services associated with 
the information collection?
    E. What additional actions could be taken to minimize the burden of 
this collection of information? Such actions may involve the use of 
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology.
    F. Does any other Federal, State, or local agency collect similar 
information? If so, specify the agency, the data element(s), and the 
methods of collection.

As a Potential User of the Information To Be Collected

    A. Is the information useful at the levels of detail to be 
collected?
    B. For what purpose(s) would the information be used? Be specific.
    C. Are there alternate sources for the information and are they 
useful? If so, what are their weaknesses and/or strengths?

    Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized 
and/or included in the request for OMB approval of the form. They also 
will become a matter of public record.

    Statutory Authority: Section 3507(h)(1) of the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. No. 104-13, 44 U.S.C. Chapter 35).


    Issued in Washington, DC, March 7, 2001.

Jay H. Casselberry,
Agency Clearance Officer, Statistics and Methods Group, Energy 
Information Administration.