PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION
OF WEST VIRGINIA
CHARLESTON
CASE NO. 21-0579-E-CS-PW
AES LAUREL MOUNTAIN, LLC,
Application for waiver of siting certificate modification requirements or, in the alternative,for modification of the siting certificate and request for expedited consideration.
NOTICE OF FILING
By an order issued in Case No. 08-0109-E-CS on November 26, 2008, the Public Service Commission of West Virginia (Commission) granted AES Laurel Mountain, LLC (Laurel Mountain) a siting certificate (Certificate) for the construction and operation of a wholesale electric generating facility consisting of up to 65 wind turbines and related interconnection facilities (Project). Sixty-one of the originally permitted sixty-five Project wind turbines were built along a twelve-mile stretch of the Laurel Mountain ridgeline about three miles east of Belington in Barbour County and three miles northwest of Elkins in Randolph County. The Project interconnects with a 138 kV overhead transmission line that crosses Laurel Mountain at about the midpoint between the Belington and Lough’s Lane substations of Monongahela Power Company. The Project is owned by Laurel Mountain, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The AES Corporation.
On July 26, 2021, Laurel Mountain filed an Application requesting that the Commission (i) determine that the proposed repowering of the Project by replacing the existing blades, drivetrains, and hubs (but not the existing towers and foundations) is not material and does not require modification of the Certificate for the Project; or (ii) in the alternative, modify the Certificate to incorporate the proposed revisions to the Project (Application). The proposed changes to the Project consist of:
* Removing existing blades, drivetrains, and hubs and replacing the blades with 44.2-meter (145-foot) blades [91-meter (299-foot) rotor diameter] for ten of the turbines and 47.3-meter (155-foot) blades [97-meter (318-foot) rotor diameter) for the remaining 51 turbines.
* Increasing the total maximum blade tip height from 122.6 meters (402 feet) to 126.5 meters (415 feet) for the 91-meter rotor diameter blades and to 129.6 meters (425 feet) for the 97-meter rotor diameter blades.
* Increasing the aggregate maximum electric generation capacity of the Project from 97.6 megawatts (MW) to 98.8 MW (an increase of 0.02 MW per turbine).
Laurel Mountain asserts that the proposed changes do not materially change the Project design or footprint, its transmission or generation capacity, or its impact on viewshed, noise, or other environmental resources.
The Commission granted interim relief to authorize Laurel Mountain to conduct certain pre-construction activities (certain road improvements and site clearing) prior to the Commission’s issuance of a final order on the other relief requested in the Application.
Further information concerning the Application is available in the case file at the Commission offices at 201 Brooks Street, Charleston, West Virginia, or on the Commission’s website, www.psc.state.wv.us, under Case No. 21-0579-E-CS-PW.
Anyone desiring to protest the Application or intervene in this case must file a written protest or request to intervene within thirty (30) days of the date of the publication of this notice. Anyone requesting a hearing in this case must also file such request in writing within the same 30 day period and state why a hearing is necessary. Failure to timely protest or intervene can affect your right to protest or participate in future proceedings in this case. If no substantial protests are received within said thirty (30) day period, the Commission may waive formal hearing and grant the Application based on the evidence submitted with said Application and its review thereof. All protests or requests to intervene shall briefly state the reason(s) for the protest or intervention. Requests to intervene must comply with the Commission’s rules on intervention set forth in the Commission’s Rules of Practice and Procedure. The Commission’s rules are available via a link on the Commission’s Home Page to the website of the West Virginia Secretary of State. All protests, requests to intervene, and requests for hearing must be addressed to Connie Graley, Executive Secretary, Post Office Box 812, Charleston, West Virginia 25323.
AES Laurel Mountain, LLC
8-31