FMPA Weekly
A weekly e-newsletter for FMPA members
Feb. 12, 2018
LAST WEEK
Bruce Hickle Passes Away
Bruce Hickle, city manager of Bushnell, passed away last Friday as a result of complications from the flu. Bruce was Bushnell’s representative to FMPA’s Board of Directors and Executive Committee. FMPA will share funeral arrangements as information becomes available.
Vero Beach Member City Vote
Fort Pierce Utilities Authority approved resolutions last Tuesday that will enable the city of Vero Beach to sell its electric utility. Now, 15 out of 19 member cities have approved the necessary consents and waivers. Contact: Jacob Williams
Member City Visit
Jacob Williams met last week with Traci Hall, city manager of Blountstown.
Utility Rate Services
FMPA selected several firms last Monday for retail and wholesale utility rate services. Seven proposals were received in response to a request for proposals. Three firms were selected for retail rate services: 1) Leidos, 2) NewGen Strategies & Solutions, and 3) Public Resources Management Group, Inc. Three firms were selected for wholesale rate services: 1) GDS Associates, Inc., 2) NewGen Strategies & Solutions, and 3) nFront Consulting LLC. The next step is for FMPA to finalize master service agreements with the firms, and then the agreements will be available for use by FMPA members. Contact: Sharon Smeenk
Salary Survey
FMPA’s inaugural utility salary survey closed last Friday. The survey was created to provide Florida-specific salary and benefit information to help utilities analyze employee retention. The responses will be compiled with anonymity and posted to FMPA’s Document Portal. If a city was not able to meet the deadline but would still like to submit data, they should contact Sharon Smeenk.
THIS WEEK
Winter Compliance Workshop
FMPA’s Compliance Department hosts a two-day Compliance Workshop on Monday and Tuesday at FMPA’s Orlando office. Day one will cover North American Electric Reliability Corporation initiatives as well as new and upcoming standards. On day two, the Institute of Inteal Auditors will facilitate training on inteal controls. Contact: Carol Chinn
APPA CEO Roundtable
Jacob Williams is in Phoenix on Monday attending the American Public Power Association’s (APPA) CEO Roundtable. The meeting is designed for public power leaders to meet and exchange information with peers.
Vero Beach Member City Votes
Jody Finklea travels to Alachua on Monday and Jacob Williams travels to Fort Meade on Tuesday for voting on resolutions that would enable the city of Vero Beach to sell its electric utility.
Member City Visit
Jacob Williams travels to Clewiston on Wednesday to meet with individual City Commission members regarding the Vero Beach deal.
FEMA Procurement Workshop
FMPA will host a workshop Wednesday to discuss compliance with procurement standards of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). A webcast will be provided for those unable to attend in person. The workshop will cover: 1) a review of FEMA procurement requirements, 2) a discussion of FMPA’s procurement process, 3) FEMA Procurement Toolkit, 4) how to customize and implement the Toolkit, and 5) FEMA requirements, paperwork and submittals. Contact: Sharon Smeenk
Board of Directors
FMPA’s Board of Directors meets Thursday in the Board room at 9 a.m. The Board will hear several information items, including: 1) solar project update, 2) Vero Beach status update, 3) human resources policy, and 4) annual debt report. Following the meeting, there will be a ceremony recognizing the 4oth anniversary of FMPA’s first meeting. The agenda package is available on the Portal. Contact: Jacob Williams
Executive Committee
The Executive Committee meets Thursday in the Board room at 10 a.m., or immediately following the Board of Directors meeting. The Committee will hear several information items, including: 1) solar project update, 2) Vero Beach status update, and 3) Fort Meade CROD adjustment/supplemental power and ancillary services agreement. The agenda package is available on the Portal. Contact: Jacob Williams
APPA Legislative Rally Webinar
FMPA and the Florida Municipal Electric Association host a free webinar this Friday for members attending the American Public Power Association’s (APPA) Legislative Rally. Approximately 45 representatives from 17 Florida cities are scheduled to participate in the Rally on Feb. 26-28 in Washington, D.C. While in the nation’s capital, they will meet with Florida’s congressional delegation to discuss federal legislative issues related to electric utilities. Contact: Mark McCain
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 Feb. 11. Contact: Jim Atz
Special Dates
Congratulations to Dan O’Hagan, who celebrates 13 years with FMPA on Wednesday, Feb. 14.
COMING UP
Substation Training Series
Session three of FMPA’s Substation Training series will be held Feb. 20 and Feb. 21 at Orlando Utilities Commission’s Engineering Building. The topics for this session are: 1) power transformer testing, 2) LTC controls and settings, and 3) regulator testing. This hands-on course is designed to provide participants with in-depth instruction on substation-related topics and is tailored to the specific equipment of the attendee’s utilities. Lunch will be provided. Contact: Sharon Smeenk
AMI Workshop
FMPA will hold an Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) workshop on March 6 at FMPA’s Orlando office. Members who have implemented AMI, are currently implementing AMI or considering AMI are encouraged to attend. The purpose of the meeting is to share information and consider opportunities for working together to assist cities with AMI implementation. There is no cost to attend. https://fmpa.com/event/ami-workshop/>
GIS Roundtable
FMPA will host a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) roundtable on March 22 at FMPA’s Orlando office. The roundtable provides a forum for GIS staff from member utilities to exchange information, share best practices and network with peers. There is no cost to attend, and lunch will be provided. https://fmpa.com/event/fmpa-gis-roundtable-march-22-2018/>
INDUSTRY NEWS
Florida Power & Light (FPL) is seeking approval from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for a second license extension for its Turkey Point nuclear Units 3 and 4, marking the first such application in U.S. nuclear plant operating history. FPL said in a http://newsroom.fpl.com/MiamiDadeFuture” target=_blank>statement, “In 2018, the company plans to conduct additional upgrades on the existing nuclear units that are expected to further boost their output by a combined 40 megawatts of capacity, and it also will file with the NRC to renew the units’ operating licenses. Renewing the licenses would allow the units to operate until 2052 and 2053 and save FPL customers billions of dollars by avoiding the need for other more expensive power generation, The initial license renewal for Units 3 and 4 occurred in 2002 extending the operating licenses https://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications.html” target=_blank>until 2032 and 2033 respectively.
The Florida Office of Public Counsel is appealing a decision that would allow Florida Power & Light (FPL) to collect money from customers for a project to mitigate a saltwater plume from FPL’s Turkey Point Nuclear Generating Station. The Office of Public Counsel, which represents utility consumers, filed a notice last Monday that it is taking the dispute to the Florida Supreme Court. The case centers on a Dec. 12 decision by the Florida Public Service Commission that would allow FPL to collect at least $176.4 million for the project. The South Florida Water Management District in 2013 determined that “hypersaline water from a cooling-canal system at FPL’s Turkey Point complex in Miami-Dade County had moved offsite. FPL later entered into agreements with Miami-Dade County and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to address the problem. The remediation project is expected to take about 10 years and cost an estimated $176.4 million, according to FPL’s estimate last December. Interest costs could push the cost to approximately $200 million.
A draft report on opportunities and considerations for selling JEA was released last Wednesday by the Jacksonville-based utility’s financial advisor. The preliminary report from Public Financial Management concludes, “It is very likely that the sale of JEA, in whole or in part, can produce substantial up-front net proceeds to the City—even after all of JEA’s liabilities have been accounted for. Current market conditions can be expected to provide for a greater net value of JEA to the City than at any time in the past. The sale of JEA would be an enormously complex undertaking. The purpose of the report was not to make a recommendation on the potential sale but to explain important considerations for making a decision. The current draft of the report concludes, “In the past, it could be expected that the sale of JEA would not produce enough proceeds to satisfy JEA’s liabilities and still leave sufficient net proceeds to compensate the City for future economic and qualitative differences under a new ownership structure. Because of recent changes to the utility market and to JEA, those old expectations are no longer valid. The final report, which is expected to contain a range of potential values for JEA that were blank in the draft report, reportedly could be released in March.
FMPA Weekly is published by FMPA for employees and goveing boards of FMPA member utilities. Questions or comments about this newsletter may be directed to Jeff Grainger or Mason Troche in FMPA’s Public Relations Department.
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 question, comment or story idea for the newsletter? FMPA welcomes your feedback at any time. Contact: Jeff Grainger or Mason Troche
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Tel 407 355-7767
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