The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Dec. 2 went out for comment on a Sept. 14 application from Lock+ Hydro Friends Fund XII for a preliminary permit under which the company would spend up to three years studying the feasibility of the Hepburn Street Dam Hydroelectric Project, to be located on the West Branch of the Susquehanna River near Williamsport in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania.
The Hepburn Street Dam is owned by the state of Pennsylvania. The sole purpose of a preliminary permit, if issued, is to grant the permit holder priority to file a license application during the permit term.
The proposed project would consist of: the existing 1,015-foot-long and approximately 14.5-foot-high dam discharging into the West Branch of the Susquehanna River; one 150-foot-wide, 25-foot-deep Large Frame Module (LFM) containing ten 900-kW hydropower turbines for a total installed capacity of 9 MW; a 150-foot-wide, 150-foot-long tailrace; a 25-foot by 50-foot switchyard containing a new transformer and control room; and a 1,000-foot-long, 69-kV transmission line connecting the generating power to the local grid using an existing substation. The LFM would be installed either adjacent to the dam in the existing levee north of the dam or on the upper poolside of the dam.
The estimated annual generation of the Hepburn Project would be 51,000 megawatt-hours.
The applicant contact is: Wayne F. Krouse, Chairman, Hydro Green Energy LLC, Managing Partner, Lock+ Hydro Friends Fund XII, PO Box 43796, Birmingham, AL 35243; phone: 877-556-6566, extension 709.
The deadline for filing comments, motions to intervene, competing applications (without notices of intent), or notices of intent to file competing application is 60 days from the issuance of this Dec. 2 notice.
