FMPA Weekly
A weekly e-newsletter for FMPA members
Feb. 25, 2013
LAST WEEK
PSC Regulation of Municipal Utilities Bill
Rep. Debbie Mayfield, R-Vero Beach, recently filed House Bill 733, which would subject municipal electric, water, wastewater and natural gas utilities that serve any customers outside their city limits to regulation by the Florida Public Service Commission (PSC). The Florida Municipal Electric Association strongly opposes the bill and created a talking points document that explains the bill’s potential negative impacts. FMPA members are encouraged to contact their state representatives regarding the bill and use the talking points for guidance. The talking points and the House Bill are available on FMPA’s Member Portal in the Public Affairs section. Contact: Mark McCain
Policy Makers Liaisons Committee
FMPA’s Policy Makers Liaisons Committee met last Wednesday with 12 of 15 Committee members attending. The Committee discussed the state legislative outreach project and agreed to continue visits with state representatives during the year. Other discussion topics included: 1) the All-Requirements Project’s risk inventory and trend report, and 2) potential federal and state legislative issues related to electric utilities. The full agenda package is available on the Member Portal. Contact: Mark McCain
ARP Executive Committee Workshop
The ARP Executive Committee held a workshop last Wednesday to discuss the Taylor interest rate swaps and potential alteatives. The Committee plans to hold another workshop in March to discuss solutions. A backgrounder on the Taylor Swaps is available on the Member Portal. Contact: Nick Guarriello
ARP Executive Committee Meeting
The ARP Executive Committee met last Thursday and approved a revision to the capacity credit rate schedule. The Committee also discussed informational items including the status of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Reciprocating Inteal Combustion Engine rule, the city of Winter Park’s solicitation to negotiate wholesale power supply and more. The full agenda package is available on the Member Portal. Contact: Nick Guarriello
3 Phase Times
FMPA’s Power Resources Division recently published the January 2013 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 in January, total energy resources needed to meet the ARP load and other sales was 457,732 MWh, 8.9% lower than projected in the short-term forecast. The lower loads were due to mild weather. For more information, download 3 Phase Times from the Member Portal. Contact: Tom Reedy
Treasure Coast Energy Center
Treasure Coast Energy Center Unit 1 was taken offline last Friday for its scheduled spring maintenance outage. Contact: David Schumann
THIS WEEK
FMPA’s 35th Anniversary
Sunday marked the 35th anniversary of FMPA’s first official meeting. Locally owned electric utilities in Florida met Feb. 24, 1978, to create an organization that would give customers the home power advantage of a local utility, backed by the resources of a statewide organization. FMPA’s Public Relations Department has planned activities throughout the year to promote the value of public power. The campaign kicks off Monday with the release of a series of websitehttp://publicpower.com/>website; to register.
Lineman’s Roundtable
FMPA’s semi-annual Lineman’s Roundtable is scheduled for May 9 at 10 a.m. at Fort Pierce Utilities Authority’s Energy Services Center. The roundtable provides a forum for line crews to exchange ideas on operating practices, safety, training, tools, equipment and other common issues. http://www.fmpa.com/index.php/component/registrationpro/?view=event&did=26>Registration; is requested, and lunch will be provided. Contact: Sharon Samuels
INDUSTRY NEWS
Bushnell City Manager Announces Retirement
Bushnell City Manager Vince Ruano announced his retirement effective July 31 after more than 31 years of service to the city. As a long-time leader in Florida’s public power community, Vince has served in many statewide leadership roles, including his current role as Chairman of FMPA and as a former President of the Florida Municipal Electric Association. Vince is one of the longest-serving members on FMPA’s Board of Directors and the last founding member of the All-Requirements Project to retire. To prepare for the selection of a new city manager, Bushnell Mayor Bil Spaude will form a selection committee of professionals, individuals and business leaders in the community.
PSC Asks Supreme Court to Retu FPL Case
The Public Services Commission (PSC) asked the Florida Supreme Court last Thursday to retu a Florida Power & Light (FPL) rate settlement for reconsideration. In December 2012, the Commission approved a controversial $350 million base-rate increase. The state lawyer representing Florida’s utility customers, Public Council J.R. Kelly, appealed the settlement to the high court Feb. 7. Prior to that filing, an individual customer, Thomas Saporito, asked the PSC to reconsider its approval of the settlement between FPL and groups representing commercial and govemental customers. The PSC asked the Supreme Court to retu the case so it can act on Saporito’s request.
MEAG Power Seeks Bids to Purchase Power from Vogtle Nuclear Plant
The Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia (MEAG Power) is accepting bids for the purchase of capacity, energy and ancillary services from its ownership share of Vogtle Units 1 and 2 beginning Jan. 1, 2014, through the life of the facility. The operating license for Unit 1 currently expires in January 2047 and the license for Unit 2 expires in February 2049. The joint action agency is looking for transactions with a target size of 100 MW, although bids of lesser or greater sizes will be considered. The request for proposals is available on MEAG’s http://www.teainc.org/meag-power-request-for-proposals.aspx>website;.
Electric Grid Said to be Among Targets of Chinese Hackers
The Chinese govement is likely behind a series of cyber attacks on U.S. corporations and govement agencies over the past several years, according to a http://intelreport.mandiant.com/Mandiant_APT1_Report.pdf>study; released last Tuesday by Mandiant, an American computer security company based in Alexandria, Va. The New York Times, which first reported the study, said Mandiant identified cyber attacks coming from a building that houses a unit of the People’s Liberation Army. According to Mandiant, the hacking group has stolen hundreds of terabytes of data from at least 141 organizations. The Times also reported that investigators believe the latest attacks are focused on obtaining the ability to manipulate critical American infrastructure, such as the power grid and other utilities. The Chinese Military of Defense denied any engagement in cyber espionage.
Tribute to Mutual Aid for Hurricane Sandy
The American Public Power Association (APPA) has requested photos and video from utilities that assisted the Mid-Atlantic and Northeaste United States in recovering from Hurricane Sandy. A tribute will take place during APPA’s National Conference scheduled for June 14-19 in Nashville, Tenn. APPA is looking for photos and videos of restoration efforts. Any utilities that have high-resolution images or high-definition video are encouraged to send the material on USB drives or DVDs. APPA also is interested in customer thank you letters, as well as screen-grabs of customer gratitude via social media. Send all materials to APPA at the attention of Fallon Forbush. APPA said it cannot guarantee that all material will be used, but it will do everything it can to acknowledge all utilities that participated in the restoration effort.
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 Ryan Dumas or Allison Briggs 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. (Click here for the Staff Directory.)
Have a question, comment or story idea for the newsletter? FMPA welcomes your feedback at any time. Contact: Ryan Dumas or Allison Briggs
Florida Municipal Power Agency
8553 Commodity Circle
Orlando, FL 32819-9002
Tel 407 355-7767
Fax 407 355-5794
http://www.fmpa.com/>www.fmpa.com;
Community Power. Statewide Strength. ®