Background
The Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (PURPA) sets forth the general guidelines that electric utilities have the obligation to offer to purchase power from, and interconnect with, Qualifying Facilities. The term "Qualifying Facility" (QF) generally refers to generating resources that help conserve energy by producing electricity and using the extra heat or steam for other industrial or commercial purposes, or it can refer to small power production facilities that use a renewable source for fuel or energy.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and State of Nevada have rules which implement PURPA. Qualifying Facilities must meet certain criteria as identified in these rules. More information on Qualifying Facilities is available on the FERC Website.
Information Required
Under Nevada Administrative Code (NAC) section 704.8781 certain information is required from a Qualifying Facility in order to enter into negotiations for a power purchase agreement with the utility. In addition to providing documentation to satisfy the requirements of the NAC, interested parties should also provide (1) a copy of the facility's FERC Form 556; and (2) the interconnection plan and schedule for the Qualifying Facility, including pertinent documentation (i.e., application, studies, etc.).
More information on interconnections is contained in Attachment O to the Open Access Transmission Tariff, which is available at NV Energy's OASIS site.
Power Purchase Agreements
Helpful Links
- Schedule QF for Southern Nevada resources
- Schedule CSPP for Northern Nevada resources
- FERC Website for additional information about Qualifying Facilities
- NAC section 704.8781 for additional information required by NV Energy from QFs.
- NV Energy's OASIS site for Open Access Transmission Tariff (OATT) interconnection questions.
- Process flow diagram for new QF contracts.
