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State of New York Public Service Commission Direct Testimony Of

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State of New York Public Service Commission Direct Testimony Of State of New York Public Service Commission _________________________________ Application of Cricket Valley Energy Center, LLC for a Certificate of Environmental Compatibility and Public Need Pursuant to Article VII of the Public Service Case 13-T-0585 Law For Approval of a New 345 kV Line From the Pleasant Valley Substation to the Cricket Valley Energy Center, LLC, and the Reconductoring of an Existing 345 kV Line, in the Town of Dover, Dutchess County. _______________________________________ Direct Testimony of Allan R. Page on behalf of Dutchess County New York & Cricket Valley Improvement Coalition Dated: May 13, 2015 Allan R. Page Principal A. Page & Associates LLC 9 Vassar Street Suite 30 Poughkeepsie, New York 12601 845-452-7455 DIRECT TESTIMONY OF ALLAN R. PAGE CASE 13-T-0585 1 Q. Please state your name, title, and business address. 2 A. My name is Allan R. Page. I am a Principal in the Energy Consulting Firm of A. 3 Page & Associates LLC. My business address is 9 Vassar Street, Suite 30, 4 Poughkeepsie, New York 12601. 5 6 Q. Mr. Page, please briefly summarize your qualifications and employment background. 7 A. I received Bachelor of Science degrees in Physics and Civil Engineering from Union 8 College in Schenectady New York in 1970. In 1975 I received a Bachelor of 9 Science degree in Electrical Engineering and in 1983 a Master of Science Degree in 10 Industrial Administration both from Union College. After graduation from Union 11 College in 1970 I went to work for Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corporation as a 12 Junior Engineer. I held various Transmission and Distribution (T&D) district and 13 staff engineering positions in the Customer Service Group between 1970 and 1979. 14 Between 1979 and 1984 I worked in district and divisional level manager positions 15 in T&D and Engineering. Between 1984 and 1999 I held various executive 16 positions with titles of Assistant Vice President of Engineering, Vice President of 17 Customer Services, Senior Vice President of Corporate Services, and Executive 18 Vice President of Energy Resources, Development, and Transition. Between 1999 19 and 2002 I held various CH Energy Group positions including President and CEO 20 of CH Resources, Griffith Energy Services, Scasco, Central Hudson Enterprises 21 Corporation. During the same period of time I held positions of Executive Vice ALLAN R. PAGE CASE 13-T-0585 1 President and President of the CH Energy Group and President and Chief Operating 2 Officer of Central Hudson Energy Services. In June of 2002 I retired from Central 3 Hudson and the CH Energy Group and started an Energy Consulting Firm, A. Page 4 & Associates LLC. Since founding A. Page & Associates I have worked with 5 industrial, commercial and government clients advising and consulting on the 6 purchase of bulk electric, natural gas, propane, gasoline, and heating oil supplies. I 7 have worked with and advised attorneys and clients on power production and 8 NYISO market issues. I have provided energy forecasts and worked with 9 corporations on the development of strategic business plans. I have worked on the 10 development of renewable energy projects in the United States, Africa, the Middle 11 East, India, and China. Since 2004 Dutchess County Government has been a client. 12 In general, I provide energy policy advisory services for Dutchess County. I have 13 represented Dutchess County interests in Central Hudson’s rate proceedings most 14 recently Cases 14-E-0318/14-G-0319 in which Dutchess is an active party. I have 15 also represented Dutchess County as an active party in the Fortis/CH Energy Group 16 Merger Case 12-M-0192. Dutchess is an active party in the Energy Efficiency 17 Portfolio Standard Case 07-M-0548, and the AC Transmission Upgrades 18 Comparative Proceeding Case 13-E-0488 for which I provide representation. I am 19 also a licensed Professional Engineer in the State on New York. 20 21 Q. Mr. Page have you previously testified before the Public Service Commission? 22 A. While in the employ of Central Hudson I did previously testify in rate cases with my 23 testimony based upon supporting the Central Hudson line clearance programs. I 2 ALLAN R. PAGE CASE 13-T-0585 1 have also testified in the most recent Central Hudson Rate Cases. 2 3 Q. On whose behalf are you testifying? 4 A. I am testifying on behalf of Dutchess County New York within which the entire 5 project that is the subject of this Article VII Proceeding is sited. In addition based 6 upon the ruling of the Administrative Law Judge in awarding intervenor funding in 7 the Case on September 26, 2015, Dutchess County was directed to coordinate 8 efforts with the Towns of Pleasant Valley, Union Vale, Dover, and LaGrange and 9 Pleasant Valley Concerned Citizens (PVCC). A coalition was established to comply 10 with the Administrative Law Judges’s directive on coordination, which took the title 11 of the Cricket Valley Improvement Coalition (CVIC). I will also be testifying on 12 behalf of CVIC. 13 14 Q. What is the purpose of your testimony? 15 A. The purpose of the testimony is to address the project design proposed by the 16 applicant, the Cricket Valley Energy Center (CVEC) in this Article VII proceeding. 17 As may be appropriate in regard to the context of the testimony which follows, 18 CVEC will be used to denote the applicant as well as to note the applicant’s 19 generation facility to be constructed in Dover New York. 20 21 Q. Would you provide background on the Cricket Valley Improvement Coalition 22 (CVIC) on whose behalf you are testifying? 23 A. The CVIC was created at a meeting on November 7, 2014 held in the LaGrange 3 ALLAN R. PAGE CASE 13-T-0585 1 Town Hall in response to the Administrative Law Judge’s September 26, 2014 ruling 2 on intervenor funding directing parties receiving funding to coordinate efforts. The 3 meeting was called by Dutchess County and was attended in person by Town 4 Supervisors from LaGrange, Pleasant Valley, and Union Vale. Pleasant Valley 5 Concerned Citizens was represented in person by the Chairman of PVCC. Calling 6 into the meeting was the Supervisor from the Town of Dover. In total all 7 organizations receiving intervenor funding participated in the meeting either in 8 person or on the phone. Other parties affiliated with these intervening organizations 9 were also in attendance. 10 th 11 The first order of business at the November 7 meeting was to establish a name for 12 the organization consisting of Dutchess County, the Towns of Dover, LaGrange, 13 Pleasant Valley, Union Vale and Pleasant Valley Concerned Citizens. The 14 organization chose the name Cricket Valley Improvement Coalition because it 15 reflected the fact that all members of CVIC were of the opinion that improvements 16 could be made to CVEC’s filed application. 17 18 CVIC has met on nine occasions all in the Town of LaGrange Town Hall. Meetings 19 and discussions during the meetings and after the meetings have forged a consensus 20 on the part of CVIC on moving forward in the Article VII proceeding maximizing 21 limited resources by focus on critical issues in the proceeding. 22 23 CVIC’s central focus is to ensure that the right of way with existing transmission 4 ALLAN R. PAGE CASE 13-T-0585 1 facilities along with the proposed addition of new transmission facilities is a visual 2 improvement over the right of way as it exists today. 3 4 Q. Where do visual improvements need to take place on the transmission project 5 proposed by CVEC. 6 A. In siting the Cricket Valley generator off Route 22 in the Town of Dover New York 7 CVEC chose a location closest to the crossing of a high pressure gas transmission 8 line and an overhead 345,000 volt electric transmission line. The electric 9 transmission line runs from Pleasant Valley Substation in New York to the Long 10 Mountain Substation in Connecticut. The line runs between two states and is within 11 two transmission control areas, i.e., The New York Independent System Operator 12 (NYISO) and the Independent System Operator of New England ISO-NE. (This 13 transmission line is designated the 398 Line or the Long Mountain 345 Kv circuit. 14 The generating project is designed to interconnect into the 398 Line splitting the line 15 and allowing energy generated to flow east to Long Mountain Substation and/or west 16 to the Pleasant Valley Substation. ) This 345 Kv line in New York State is the basis 17 for this Article VII proceeding. 18 19 For the 398 Line heading east from the generating station, CVEC is seeking to 20 replace the existing line conductors with conductors of higher current carrying 21 capacity retaining and reusing existing lattice supporting structures. The 22 reconductoring on this section of the project in New York State will have minimal 23 impact on the view shed and CVIC is comfortable with the reconductoring as 5 ALLAN R. PAGE CASE 13-T-0585 1 proposed. 2 3 For the 398 Line heading west from the generating station the applicant is seeking to 4 build another 345 Kv line paralleling the existing lattice structure line. Thus for the 5 right of way heading west from the generating station, two circuits are proposed: one 6 an existing circuit on lattice structures which will be retained and the other a new 7 circuit proposed to be supported by monopoles generally situated along side of 8 existing lattice structures.
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