FMPA Weekly
A weekly e-newsletter for FMPA members
Jan. 30, 2017
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LAST WEEK
Distribution Services and Lineworker Staffing Roundtable
Fifty-two representatives from 15 member utilities, FMPA, the Florida Municipal Electric Association and Electric Cities of Georgia participated last Wednesday in the Distribution Services and Lineworker Staffing Roundtable. The group discussed ways to recruit and retain lineworkers, as well as managing distribution services. Staff from FMPA and the Florida Municipal Electric Association will meet this week to develop recommendations that will be discussed during FMPA’s Board of Directors strategic planning session in February. Contact: Sharon Smeenk
ARP Renewable Generation Credit Rate
The All-Requirements Project’s (ARP) renewable generation credit rate through March 2017 was emailed last week to members. The rate is $0.02471 per kWh. This credit represents the amount that the ARP will pay project participants for retail customer-owned renewable generation. FMPA will purchase the excess electricity generated from the customer’s renewable energy system and reimburse the ARP participant at the ARP renewable generation credit rate. Members are encouraged to report the amount of excess electricity generated by their net metering customers to Ann Beckwith on a quarterly basis.
3 Phase Times
FMPA’s Power Resources Division published the December 2016 edition of 3 Phase Times. This monthly report provides information about the All-Requirements Project’s (ARP) system peak, hourly loads, resource fuel mix, natural gas usage, natural gas pricing and more performance information. The report shows that natural gas represented 74% of ARP’s total energy sources in December. ARP sold 95,418 MWh to the Florida Municipal Power Pool (FMPP) at an average price of $24.49 per MWh, which was lower than the estimated short-term forecast of 200,187 MWh. The FMPP Average Monthly Gas Dispatch Price in December was $3.68 per MMBtu, which is $1.06 higher than November’s average. For more information, download 3 Phase Times from the Portal. Contact: Frank Gaffney
Social Media
FMPA’s posts on Facebook and Twitter last week included a picture from the Distribution Services and Lineworker Staffing Roundtable, a thank you to Rep. Darren Soto for following FMPA on social media, recognized public power utilities that travelled to Tallahassee to help with mutual aid, and more. FMPA’s reach on social media is increasing. Any individual or member utilities active on social media are encouraged to follow and share content from FMPA. On Facebook, FMPA is listed as the Florida Municipal Power Agency and the Twitter handle is @FMPAnews. Contact: Mark McCain
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THIS WEEK
Member City Visit
Jacob Williams travels to Lakeland on Tuesday for a member city visit with General Manager Joel Ivy.
PGP Introductory Meeting
Jacob Williams travels to Clearwater on Tuesday evening for an introductory dinner with the Public Gas Partners’ (PGP) Board of Directors. Jacob serves as FMPA’s representative on the PGP Board.
NERC Compliance Visit
Carol Chinn, Chris Gowder and Brandon McCormick travel to Bartow on Tuesday to provide an overview of North American Electric Reliability Corporation standards and discuss any compliance needs of the city.
Market Research Task Force
The Market Research Task Force meets Wednesday at 10 a.m. via conference call regarding the solar survey. The group will discuss: 1) the draft composite report, 2) individual city reports, 3) delivery of the final report, and 4) preparation for the presentation to FMPA’s Board of Directors. The full agenda is available on the Portal. Contact: Sharon Smeenk
All-Requirements Project Weekly Load Statistics
The weekly update of the All-Requirements Project historical load graph has been posted on the Portal. The graph is updated through Jan 29. Contact: Jim Arntz
Special Dates
Congratulations to Md Haque, who celebrates five years with FMPA on Monday, Jan. 30.
Congratulations to Jason Wolfe, who celebrates six years with FMPA on Tuesday, Jan. 31.
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COMING UP
APPA Legislative Rally
Registration is still open for the American Public Power Association’s (APPA) Legislative Rally scheduled for Feb. 27 to March 1 in Washington, D.C. Public power professionals who want to get involved and advocate on behalf of their community and the industry are encouraged to attend. Contact: Mark McCain
FMPP Seminar
The Florida Municipal Power Pool (FMPP) will host its annual seminar Feb. 15 at 8 a.m. at OUC’s Windermere Pines, formerly known as Camp Down. The seminar will cover a variety of topics, including power generation, renewables, electric reliability, North American Electric Reliability Corporation standards and more. For more information, contact FMPP Executive Director Tom Reedy.
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INDUSTRY NEWS
Florida Lineworkers Provide Mutual Aid after Severe Weather
Lineworkers and utility staff from Beaches Energy Services, JEA, Kissimmee Utility Authority and Ocala Electric Utility travelled to Tallahassee last week after severe weather brought high winds, hail and significant rainfall to parts of the state on Jan. 21 and Jan. 22. The Florida Municipal Electric Association coordinated mutual aid crews to assist in the restoration efforts. The hardest hit area was Tallahassee, which experienced a peak outage of 30,000 electric customers. Overall, approximately 50,600 electric utility customers experienced a power outage at some point over the weekend.
FPL Eaings Increase in 2016
Florida Power & Light (FPL) eaed $1.7 billion in net income for 2016, up from $1.6 billion the previous year, FPL’s parent company reported last Friday. FPL’s net income represented $3.71 per share, compared to $3.63 per share in 2015. Retail electric sales decreased 2.1% in 2016 compared to 2015, due to weather and the effects of Hurricane Matthew, the company reported. On a weather-normalized basis, FPL said its 2016 retail sales grew 1.5%, primarily driven by customer growth. NextEra Energy, the parent company, reported net income of $2.912 billion, or $6.25 per share, in 2016 compared to $2.752 billion, or $6.06 per share, in 2015.
Lawmakers Support Fracking Ban in Florida
A bipartisan group of Florida lawmakers support a bill that would ban fracking in Florida. Sen. Dana Young, R-Tampa, filed the bill last Monday, and Rep. Mike Miller, R-Orlando, plans to file a similar measure in the House of Representatives. The bill will be considered during the regular legislative session that beings March 7. Oil- and natural-gas drilling already take place in parts of northwest and southwest Florida, but the practice of fracking has not been used. Legislation proposed last year would have created a regulatory framework for fracking in the state. That bill passed the House but died in the Senate.
Trump Names LaFleur as FERC Acting Chair, Bay Resigns
President Donald Trump appointed Cheryl LaFleur as Acting Chair of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) last Thursday, and hours later, former FERC Chairman Norman Bay resigned his appointment to the commission effective Feb. 3 in a letter to the White House. Bay joined the commission in 2014 and took over as chair the following year. Bay’s departure will leave the commission with just two members. If President Trump does not name a replacement before Bay steps down, FERC will not have enough commissioners to operate. Quorum for the five-person commission is three, and after Friday, only two commissioners would remain: LaFleur and Commissioner Colette Honorable, whose term expires in June.
Steverson Resigns as Florida’s Environmental Secretary
Florida Department of Environment Protection (DEP) Secretary Jon Steverson resigned his position effective Feb. 3 to take a job with Foley & Lardner, a legal and lobbying firm. Gov. Rick Scott and the Cabinet will hold a special meeting via conference call this Wednesday to vote on an interim secretary and the process for appointing a new secretary. Unlike most agency heads who answer only to the goveor, the DEP secretary falls under Scott and the Cabinet. For interim secretary, Scott has recommended Ryan Mathews, the agency’s director of the Office of Water Policy.
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FMPA Weekly is published by FMPA’s Public Relations Department for all employees of the Agency. Questions or comments about this newsletter may be directed to Jeff Grainger or Sean Murtha.
Want more background on the names and terms used in this newsletter? Check out FMPA’s Glossary, which features some of the most frequently mentioned committees, companies, places and terms, or contact the person named in each FMPA story to lea more.
Have a story idea for the newsletter? FMPA welcomes all employees’ story suggestions including updates on FMPA business, employees’ personal or family accomplishments, as well as industry news suggestions. Contact: Jeff Grainger or Sean Murtha
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