(a) The Power Marketing Initiative (PMI) provides a framework for marketing Western's long-term firm hydroelectric resources. For covered projects, Western will make a major portion of the resources currently under contract available to existing long-term firm power customers for a period of time beyond the expiration date of their current contracts.

(b) The Western projects covered by this subpart are the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program—Eastern Division and the Loveland Area Projects (LAP). The PMI applies to covered projects to the extent it is consistent with other contractual and legal rights, and subject to any applicable project-specific environmental requirements.

Western will extend resource commitments for 20 years from the date existing contracts expire to existing customers with long-term firm power contracts from projects identified in section 905.30(b).

(a) Western will extend a project-specific percentage of the marketable resource, determined to be available at the time future resource extensions begin, to existing customers with long-term firm power contracts. The remaining unextended power will be used to establish project-specific resource pools. An initial level of 96 percent of the marketable resource will be extended for the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program—Eastern Division and the Loveland Area Projects.

(b) At two 5-year intervals after the effective date of the extension to existing customers, Western shall create a project-specific resource pool increment of up to an additional 1 percent of the long-term marketable resource under contract at the time. The size of the additional resource pool increment shall be determined by Western based on consideration of the actual fair-share needs of eligible new customers and other appropriate purposes.

(c) The initial pool percentages shall be applied to the marketable resource determined to be available at the time future resource extensions begin. Subsequent percentages shall be applied to the resource under contract at the time.

(d) The additional resource pool increments shall be established by pro rata withdrawals, on 2 years' notice, from then-existing customers. Withdrawals could be mitigated or delayed if good water conditions exist.

(e) Once the extensions for existing customers and allocations to new customers from the resource pool have been made, additional power resources may become available for various reasons. Any additional available resources will be used as follows:

(1) If power is reserved for new customers but not allocated, or resources are offered but not placed under contract, this power will be offered on a pro rata basis to customers that contributed to the resource pool through application of the extension formula in § 905.33.

(2) If power resources become available as a result of the enhancement of existing generation, project-use load efficiency upgrades, the development of new resources, or resources turned back to Western, Western may elect to use this power to reduce the need to acquire firming resources, retain the power for operational flexibility, sell these resources on a short-term basis, or allocate the power.

(3) If resources become available due to imposition of penalties pursuant to § 905.17, Western may make such resources available within the marketing area to existing customers that are in compliance with subpart B, subject to withdrawal.

(a) The amount of power to be extended to an existing customer shall be determined according to this formula:

Customer Contract Rate of Delivery (CROD) today/total project CROD under contract today × project-specific percentage × marketable resource determined to be available at the time future resource extensions begin = CROD extended.

(b) Where contract rates of delivery vary by season, the formula shall be used on a seasonal basis to determine the extended power resource. A similar pro rata approach shall be used for energy extensions.

(c) Determination of the amount of resource available after existing contracts expire, if significantly different from existing resource commitments, shall take place only after an appropriate public process.

(d) The formula set forth in paragraph (a) of this section also should be used to determine the amounts of firm power subject to withdrawal at 5-year intervals after the effective date of the extension to existing customers, except that the percentage used would be up to 1 percent for each of the two withdrawal opportunities, and the formula would use the customer CROD, project CROD and the resource under contract at the time.

Western reserves the right to adjust marketable resources committed to all customers with long-term firm power contracts only as required to respond to changes in hydrology and river operations, except as otherwise expressly provided in these regulations. Under contracts that extend resources under this PMI, existing customers shall be given at least 5 years' notice before adjustments are made. New customers may receive less notice. The earliest that any notice under this section shall become effective is the date that existing contractual commitments expire. Any adjustment shall only take place after an appropriate public process. Withdrawals to serve project use and other purposes provided for by contract shall continue to take place based on existing contract/marketing criteria principles.

(a) Allocations to new customers from the project-specific resource pools established under § 905.32 shall be determined through separate public processes in each project's marketing area. New customers receiving an allocation must execute a long-term firm power contract to receive the allocated power and are required to comply with the IRP requirements in this part. Contracts with new customers shall expire on the same date as firm power contracts with all other customers of a project.

(b) To be eligible for an allocation, a potential new customer must be a preference entity, as defined in Reclamation law, within the currently established marketing area for a project.

(c) Entities that desire to purchase power from Western for resale to consumers, including municipalities, cooperatives, public utility districts and public power districts, must have utility status. Native American tribes are not subject to this requirement. Utility status means that the entity has responsibility to meet load growth, has a distribution system, and is ready, willing, and able to purchase power from Western on a wholesale basis for resale to retail consumers. To be eligible to apply for power available from a project's initial resource pool, those entities that desire to purchase Western power for resale to consumers must have attained utility status by December 31, 1996, for the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program—Eastern Division, and by September 30, 2000, for the Loveland Area Projects. To be eligible to apply for power from subsequent resource pool increments, these entities must have attained utility status no later than 3 years prior to availability of the incremental addition to the resource pool. Deadlines for attaining utility status for other projects will be established at a later date.

Western shall retain applicable provisions of existing marketing criteria for projects where resource commitments are extended beyond the current expiration date of long-term firm power sales contracts. Western must retain important marketing plan provisions such as classes of service, marketing area, and points of delivery, to the extent that these provisions are consistent with the PMI. The PMI, eligibility and allocation criteria for potential new customers, retained or amended provisions of existing marketing criteria, the project-specific resource definition, and the size of a project-specific resource pool shall constitute the future marketing plan for each project.

Modified contractual language shall be required to place resource extensions under contract. Resource extensions and allocations to new customers from the initial resource pool will take effect when existing contracts expire. These dates are December 31, 2000, for the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program—Eastern Division and September 30, 2004, for the Loveland Area Projects. For the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program—Eastern Division, Western will offer contracts to existing customers for resource extensions no sooner than the effective date of the final regulations. For the Loveland Area Projects, existing contracts provide for potential adjustments to marketable resources in 1999. No contracts will be offered to existing customers for post-2004 Loveland Area Projects resources until the analysis of potential resource adjustments in 1999 has been completed and any adjustments are implemented. Existing power sales contracts require that this analysis be completed by 1996.