OAR 860-029-0010: Definitions for Division 029 Rules

(1) "AC" means alternating current. (2) "Avoided costs" means the electric utility’s incremental costs of electric energy or capacity or both which, but for the purchase from the qualifying facility or qualifying facilities, the electric utility would generate itself or purchase from another source, including any costs of interconnection of such resource to the system. (3) "Back-up power" and "stand-by power" mean electric energy or capacity supplied by a public utility to replace energy ordinarily generated by a qualifying facility’s own generation equipment during an unscheduled outage of the facility. (4) "Capacity" means the average output in kilowatts (kW) committed by a qualifying facility to an electric utility during a specific period. (5) "Capacity costs" mean the costs associated with supplying capacity; they are an allocated component of the fixed costs associated with providing the capability to deliver energy. (6) "Certified qualifying facility" means a qualifying facility that is certified as such under 18 CFR Part 292. (7) "Cogeneration" means the sequential generation of electric energy and useful heat from the same primary energy source or fuel for industrial, commercial, heating, or cooling purposes. (8) "Cogeneration facility" means a facility which produces electric energy and steam or other forms of useful energy (such as heat) by cogeneration that are used for industrial, commercial, heating, or cooling purposes. (9) "Commercial operation date" means the date after start-up testing is complete on which the total Nameplate Capacity Rating of the Facility is fully interconnected, fully integrated, and synchronized with the System, and the qualifying facility has satisfied the criteria required by the power purchase agreement to declare commercial operation. (10) "Commission" means the Public Utility Commission of Oregon. (11) "Contract Price" means during the fixed price term, the applicable fixed price for On-peak Hours and Off-peak Hours specified in the purchasing utility's avoided cost price schedule, and during the subsequent non-fixed price term, the purchasing utility's applicable Index Price in effect when the energy is generated. (12) "Costs of interconnection" means the reasonable costs of connection, switching, dispatching, metering, transmission, distribution, equipment necessary for System protection, safety provisions, and administrative costs incurred by an electric utility directly related to installing and maintaining the physical facilities necessary to permit purchases from a qualifying facility. (13) "Demand" means the average rate in kilowatts at which electric energy is delivered during a set period to be determined by mutual agreement between the electric utility and the customer. (14) "Development period" means the time period commencing on the Effective Date and ending at 24:00 in the prevailing time zone in which the qualifying facility is located on the day before the scheduled commercial operation date or such earlier date on which the qualifying facility achieves the commercial operation date in compliance with these rules. (15) "Effective date" means the date specified in the power purchase agreement on which the power purchase agreement between the qualifying facility and the public utility becomes effective. (16) "Electric utility" means a nonregulated utility or a public utility as defined in ORS 758.505. (17) "Energy" means electric energy, measured in kilowatt hours (kWh). (18) "Energy costs" means: (a) For nonfirm energy, the incremental costs associated with the production or purchase of electric energy by the electric utility, which include the cost of fuel and variable operation and maintenance expenses, or the cost of purchased energy; (b) For firm energy, the combined allocated fixed costs and associated variable costs applicable to a displaced generating unit or to a purchase. (19) "Existing QF" means a QF that is or has been operational before the effective date of a power purchase agreement. (20) "Facility" means all equipment, devices, associated appurtenances, owned, controlled, operated, and managed by a qualifying facility in connection with, or to facilitate, the production, storage, generation, transmission, delivery, or furnishing of electric energy by the qualifying facility to the purchasing public utility and required to interconnect with the System. (21) "FERC" means the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. (22) "Firm energy" means a specified quantity of energy committed by a qualifying facility to an electric utility. (23) "Fixed rate term" means for qualifying facilities electing to sell firm energy or firm capacity or both, the period of a power purchase agreement during which the public utility pays the qualifying facility avoided cost rates determined either at the time of contracting or at the time of delivery. (24) "Forced Outage" means (a) An outage that requires immediate removal of a unit from service, another outage state, or a reserve shutdown state; (b) An outage that does not require immediate removal of a unit from the in-service state but requires removal within six hours; or (c) An outage that can be postponed beyond six hours but requires that a unit be removed from the in-service state before the end of the next weekend. (25) "Generator Interconnection Agreement" means the generator interconnection agreement between the qualifying facility and qualifying facility's interconnection provider. (26) "Index rate" means the market index rate approved by the Commission for inclusion in the purchasing public utility's standard power purchase agreement. (27) "Interruptible power" means electric energy or capacity supplied by a public utility to a qualifying facility subject to interruption by the electric utility under certain specified conditions. (28) "Maintenance Outage" means an outage that can be deferred beyond the next weekend but requires that the unit be removed from service before the next Planned Outage. A Maintenance Outage can occur any time during the year, has a flexible start date, may or may not have a predetermined duration and is usually shorter than a Planned Outage. (29) "Maintenance power" means electric energy or capacity supplied by a public utility during scheduled outages of a qualifying facility. (30) "MW" means megawatt. (31) "MWh" means megawatt-hour. (32) "Nameplate Capacity Rating" means maximum installed instantaneous power production capacity of the completed Facility, expressed in MW (AC), and measured at the Point of Interconnection, when operated in compliance with the Generation Interconnection Agreement and consistent with the recommended power factor and operating parameters provided by the manufacturer of the generator, inverters, and energy storage devices where relevant. (33) "NERC" means the North American Electric Reliability Corporation. (34) "Net Output" means all energy and capacity produced by the qualifying facility, less station service, losses, and other adjustments, flowing through the Point of Interconnection. (35) "Network Upgrades" means an addition, modification, or upgrade to the transmission system of a purchasing utility required at or beyond the Point of Delivery to accommodate the transmission provider's receipt of energy from a generation facility to the transmission provider's System. (36) "New qualifying facility" means a qualifying facility that is not an existing qualifying facility. (37) "Nonfirm energy" means energy to be delivered by a qualifying facility to an electric utility on an "as available" basis; or energy delivered by a qualifying facility in excess of its firm energy commitment. The rate for nonfirm energy may contain an element representing the value of aggregate capacity of nonfirm sources. (38) "Non-fixed price term" means the portion of the purchase term of a power purchase agreement that begins after the fixed-price term has ended, during which the qualifying facility receives pricing equal to the purchasing public utility's Index Rate. The length of the non-fixed price term is selected by the qualifying facility and specified in the power purchase agreement. (39) "Nonregulated utility" means an entity providing retail electric utility service to Oregon customers that is a people’s utility district organized under ORS Chapter 261, a municipal utility operating under ORS Chapter 225, or an electric cooperative organized under ORS Chapter 62. (40) "Off-peak hours" means all hours other than On-peak hours. (41) "On-peak hours" means the hours designated as such in the purchasing public utility's avoided cost price schedule. (42) "Permits" mean the permits, licenses, approvals, certificates, entitlements and other authorizations issued by governmental authorities required for the construction, ownership or operation of the Facility or occupancy of the site on which it is located. (43) "Planned Outage" means an outage that is scheduled well in advance and is of a predetermined duration. A "Planned Outage" is also known as a "Scheduled Outage ." (44) "Point of Delivery" means for off-system qualifying facilities, the point on the purchasing public utility's distribution or transmission system where the qualifying facility and purchasing public utility have agreed the qualifying facility will deliver energy to the purchasing public utility. For on-system qualifying facilities, the Point of Delivery is the Point of Interconnection. (45) "Point of Interconnection" means the point where the qualifying facility is electrically connected to an electric utility's transmission or distribution system. (46) "Primary energy source" means the fuel or fuels used for the generation of electric energy. The term does not include minimum amounts of fuel required for ignition, start-up, testing, flame stabilization, and control uses; the term does not include minimum amounts of fuel required to alleviate or prevent unanticipated equipment outages and emergencies which directly affect the public health, safety, or welfare. (47) "Public utility" means a utility regulated by the Commission under ORS Chapter 757, that provides electric power to customers. (48) "Purchase" means the purchase of electric energy or capacity or both from a qualifying facility by an electric utility. (49) "Purchase period" means the period of a power purchase agreement during which the qualifying facility is required to sell power to the public utility and the public utility is required to purchase power offered for sale. (50) "Qualifying facility" means a cogeneration facility or a small power production facility as defined in 18 CFR Part 292. Unless otherwise specified, "qualifying facility" includes proposed qualifying facilities, (e.g., entities that intend to obtain certification as a qualifying facility but that have not yet done so). (51) "Rate" means any price, charge, or classification made, demanded, observed, or received with respect to the sale or purchase of electric energy or capacity or any rule, regulation, or practice respecting any such price, charge, or classification. (52) "Renewable energy certificate" has the meaning given that term in OAR 330-160-0015(17). (53) "Renewable Portfolio Standard" or "RPS' is the standard for large electric utilities in ORS 469A.052(1) or the standard for small electric utilities in ORS 469A.055 in effect as of October 23, 2018. (54) "Renewable qualifying facility" means a qualifying facility that generates electricity that may be used for compliance with the RPS. (55) "RPS attributes" means all attributes related to the Net Output generated by the qualifying facility that are required to provide the public utility with "qualifying electricity" as that term is defined in Oregon's Renewable Portfolio Standard Act, ORS 469A.010, in effect as of October 23, 2018. RPS attributes do not include environmental attributes that are greenhouse gas offsets from methane capture not associated with the generation of electricity. (56) "Sale" means the sale of electric energy or capacity or both by a public utility to a qualifying facility. (57) "Schedule" means the purchasing public utility's schedule filed with the Commission setting forth terms and rates for standard power purchase agreements. (58) "Scheduled commercial operation date" means the commercial operation date specified by the qualifying facility and included in the standard power purchase agreement. (59) "Small power production facility" means a facility which produces electric energy using as a primary energy source biomass, waste, solar energy, wind power, water power, geothermal energy, or any combination thereof. Only small power production facilities which, with any other facilities located at the same site, have power production capacities of 80 megawatts or less, are covered by these rules. (60) "Start-up Testing" means the start-up testing required by the manufacturer or interconnection provider that establishes that the Facility is reliably producing electric energy. (61) "System" means the electric transmission and distribution system owned or operated by the purchasing public utility, or where applicable, another electric utility. (62) "Test energy" means electric energy generated by the Facility during the Test Period, and renewable energy certificates and capacity rights associated with such electric energy. (63) "Test period" means a period during which Start-up Testing is conducted. (64) "Time of delivery" means: (a) In the case of capacity, when the generation is first online and capable of meeting the capacity commitment of the qualifying facility to the electric utility under the terms of its contract or other legally enforceable obligation. (b) In the case of firm energy and depending upon the contract between the parties, either: (A) When the first kilowatt-hour of energy is able to be delivered under the commitment of the qualifying facility; or (B) When each kilowatt-hour is delivered under the commitment of the qualifying facility. (65) "Time the obligation to purchase the energy capacity or energy and capacity is incurred" means the earlier of: (a) The date on which a binding, written obligation is entered into between a qualifying facility and a public utility to deliver energy, capacity, or energy and capacity; or (b) The date determined by the Commission. (66) "Total output" means all energy produced by the Facility.