Transmission & Distribution Program

Fact Sheets

Module 2.3

Instructor: Dave James

Project Development and Construction Methods

TADP 544

Overview

Fact Sheet Outline

“Why?”

Need Statement

“Where?”

Line Route Options & Project Alternatives

“When?”

Schedule

“What?”

Project/Construction

Description

Stakeholder Discussion

Project Mailing List

Stakeholders

Customers

Property Owners

Permitting Authorities

Elected Officials

Community Groups

Engage Internal “Stakeholders”

Planners, Engineers, Managers, Economic/Community

Development, Permit Coordinators (formation of

Project Team)

Drive Internal Consensus? What is the Utility’s message.

What are we prepared to do?

Reinforce commitment of senior management (funding)

Why Create a Fact Sheet

Why Create a Fact Sheet

Engage External “Stakeholders”

Announce project plan and objectives in a controlled fashion vs.

“leaked information”

Provide a consistent and enduring message of why the project is

important to them

Invite public input and community involvement

Inform elected officials and community leaders (no surprises)

Minimize the Risk of project delays

Organized opposition to a project can significantly delay,

alter, or force cancellation (escalates time & cost)

The permitting approval “bar” is proportional to public

sentiment

(apathy = low, outage = high)

Informing the public and creating a communication plan

“after the fact” is painful, time consuming, and the

company’s credibility cannot be fully restored

Why Create a Fact Sheet

Public Involvement (Dave’s Version)

During the 1940’s through the 1960’s, most utility infrastructure projects were

conducted without direct engagement of the public. The utility identified need,

developed a project plan, and executed the plan with little or no communication

provided to stakeholders.

Beginning in the 1970’s, utility projects began to lose “universal” support as

organized groups began opposing construction of generating plant, substations,

and transmission lines. That trend intensified tremendously during the early

1990’s as EMF (electromagnetic fields) provided a tremendous vehicle for

opposition groups to drive transmission line development away from homes,

schools, and businesses.

Today, most utilities recognize that without early and meaningful engagement of

stakeholders, transmission projects will face significant delays, legal battles, and

may never be realized. Oftentimes, transmission line projects are announced

several years before construction is slated to begin. In most cases, the process

to obtain “construction authority” is 2-3 times as long as the construction period.

The “fact sheet” is a common element to almost all project communication plans.

Creating a Project “Fact Sheet” The 4-W Outline

1. Why – The central theme of any fact sheet is to clearly state the problem need. The problem need statement will be used in subsequent press releases, commission rate cases, legal questions, and media inquiries.

2. Where – People are very interested only if the project impact them. Is it close by? Will I see it? Will it impact my property value? Is it dangerous? Will my children be impacted? What is the utility hiding from me? It is vital that the fact sheet address transmission line route options and or alternatives to line construction.

3. When – Schedule. If construction is “imminent” stakeholders feel powerless to effect change or provide input. Near term schedules tend to promote opposition while future construction tends to create apathy.

4. What – Constructed outcome. Public opposition is directly proportional to the aesthetics of the project. What will the towers look like? What will change in my view-shed? How will they construct the line? Will I be directly impacted or inconvenienced?

Ground Rules

Informational If projects options are limited or perhaps even singular, the fact

sheet tone should be largely informational. For instance, if the projec impacts are minor in nature (rebuild of an existing line, tower reconfiguration, line removal) the fact sheet serves as a pure communication tool rather than an invitation for public input. “Just want to make you aware of some changes to your electric system”

Need Input If there are multiple route options or even non-transmission

alternatives (distributed generation, demand side management, an “accepted” reduction is reliability) the fact sheet should “solicit” public input. Building public consensus or support and avoiding organized opposition is key when there are clear losers and winners. In general, large capital projects need broad based public support. However, even small projects can suffer localized opposition.

Unfortunately, there is no absolute right or wrong way to create a

project sheet. The approach that we will use in this course is to apply

the 4-W outline and answer a number of questions to help us draft

responses to common concerns and questions. In this course module,

you will create a fact sheet for one of the case study projects discussed in presentation #2.

Prior to drafting the fact sheet, it is helpful to understand the

utility’s overall communication strategy for the project. This will

drive the “tone” of the fact sheet.

Fact Sheet Problem Statement Answering the “Why”

1. Is the system problem reliability or adequacy based (supply)?

2. What will happen if we “Do Nothing”?

3. Are there alternatives to the construction of a transmission line

4. How urgent is the need?

5. How will the utility engage stakeholders in the siting and approval process?

6. Exactly what lines or pieces of equipment overload?

7. Will the project improve service to customers? How?

Here are a number of questions to consider when drafting a

project need statement

British Columbia’s

Vancouver Island

Reinforcement Project

Fact Sheet Example

BCHA is promoting a project to

construct a 230 kV line from the mainland to Vancouver Island. Based on

information from BC’s website, the project appears to be in

response to load growth on the island. Assume that outages on the existing 500 kV line cause

overloads on the 138 kV line and that existing infrastructure cannot

support the current and future demands of customers. The project is a submarine cable

project. BC plans to energize the project in the fall of 2008.

VI Island 230 kV listed as $204M

Existing 138 and 500 kV sources

Answering “Why” for BC Hydro

1. Is the system problem reliability or adequacy based (supply)? Though most projects address elements of both reliability and adequacy, the BCHA issue is largely a supply issue. Load growth is simply outpacing the existing infrastructure’s capacity to serve customer load. Aligning the project with local needs & benefits will help quell fears that the project will serve the interest of “others”. Might V.I. Residents oppose the project is BC planned to extend the 230 down into the States?

2. What will happen if we “Do Nothing”? Addressing the “Do Nothing” alternative provides another means to reinforce the importance of the project. In this case, the status quo might be treated as: If BCHA does not make improvements to their electrical delivery system, Vancouver Island residents may experience rotating power outages to relieve system loading during periods of peak demand. Restoration of service during outages will take longer to complete. Customers may be asked to voluntary curtail their electricity usage. The risk of a prolonged electrical blackout will increase over time.

3. Are there alternatives to the construction of a transmission line. Oftentimes there “are” alternatives to constructing a transmission line but the alternatives may be more costly or present a set of new challenges. In the SCE case study, the Devers-Palo Verde line will increase the ability to import energy from Arizona to Southern California. Clearly, one of the alternatives would be to construct new sources of energy directly in California rather than importing from nearby states. However, would residents of Orange County support a large generation facility (coal, nuclear, wind)? In the BCHA situation, assume that generation is not an option that the company would support. Are there non-transmission line construction options?

4. How urgent is the need? BCHA notes an energization target of fall/2008. The timing of any project is important. If the need is “acute”, stakeholders tend to blame the utility for waiting until options are limited. However, if the project isn’t needed for 5 or even 10 years, project input often suffers from a general lack of interest. In order to provide a balanced response, avoid using phrases like emergency or blackout but opt for “the utility cannot supply electric demand under all loading conditions” and “the system is approaching its capacity limit”.

5. How will the utility engage stakeholders in the siting and approval process? Let’s assume that BCHA plans to conduct a series of public meetings to discuss the potential routing of transmission cable across Georgia Strait? If that meeting schedule is know, include that information in the need statement. Consider language like, “BCHA needs your input on the routing of wires and cables and we invite you to attend a series of public workshops to discuss the project”. That phraseology indicates that the utility is sharing control with stakeholders.

6. Exactly what lines or pieces of equipment overload? In this case, “outages on the 500 kV cable cause severe overloads on the 138 kV cables”. Or perhaps, “during periods of peak summer and winter loading, the existing transmission lines that serve Vancouver Island must operate at capacity to meet customer demand”.

Fact Sheet Project Alternatives Answering the “Where”

1. What criteria will be used to develop route options? (siting criteria)

2. Is there a “preferred option”?

3. Can the line be buried? (undergrounding)

4. How will route options be illustrated? (general location, specific location, start-finish points only)

5. Will the line be routed on private or public property?

6. Is this a brownfield or greenfield project?

7. Is there anything about this project that makes it “unique”?

Answering “Where” for BC Hydro

1. What criteria will be used to develop route options? (siting criteria) In the BC example, spanning Georgia Strait with an overhead line is not feasible. However, the utility might consider routing cables on existing bridges rather than installing more costly submarine cable. If the utility has a siting criteria “policy” it should communicate that policy, honestly & consistently. In the BC example, there may be “logical” submarine cable terminations associated with existing infrastructure.

2. Is there a “preferred option”? One strategy for providing line options but to announce utility “support” for one of the options is to identify one of the routes as “the preferred alternative”. Be prepared to list the reasons why the option is preferred (e.g. lowest cost, least impactive to the environment, most direct route, routes through industrial area, avoids houses, schools, business)

3. Can the line be buried? (undergrounding) In the BC example, the utility “plans” to underground the circuit. Though the “underground” option is being realized more often in urban areas, the vast majority of transmission construction is above ground. Cost, capacity constraints, and maintenance issues are the most common objections to considering UG cable. For example, “The cost to underground this project is estimated to be 10-20 times the cost of an overhead line. This incremental cost to use buried cables does not align with projected benefits to customers.”

4. How will route options be illustrated? (general location, specific location, start-finish points only) In most cases, mapping is used to illustrate line route locations. If line routes have been clearly identified (e.g. 115 kV routed along urban arterials), consider providing that information. However, if the utility plans to engage in a more “open” process with the public, consider indicating only the termination points. For example, “BCHA plans to route a transmission line between existing substation near the southern tip of Vancouver Island. These facilities are shown as (Sub 1) and (Sub 2) on the insert map”. The key to showing route options is to “honestly” indicate what the utility has agreed to support. Again, achieving internal consensus on route options is key to answering “Where”.

5. Will the line be routed on private or public property? Even though a line project may route along a state or federal highway, the utility may intend to locate the line on private property to protect the asset from future widening projects. Or, the utility may hope to “fast track” the project by using public right-of-way and avoid prolonged negotiations with property owners. Again, if the utility is preferencing public over private land, use the fact sheet to communicate intent.

6. Is this a brownfield or greenfield project? Take care NOT to use utility jargon terms. The fact sheet must be written with a lay audience in mind. However, stakeholders make a clear distinction between a utility’s plan to rebuild or reconstruct “aging transmission lines” and plans to develop a new transmission corridor. The industry trend is to increase capacity of existing lines, combine low and high voltage lines, and to re-use corridors rather than construct “greenfield” projects.

Fact Sheet Project Schedule Answering the “When”

1. What is the project timeline for: Planning & Permitting, Engineering, Land Acquisition, and Construction?

2. What is the best means to breakdown and convey the schedule?

3. At what point does the line route become “definite”?

4. When and how will the utility engage the public? (public meetings, one-on-one meetings with landowners, key stakeholders, media campaign, customer survey, public utility commission)

5. Are there “unknown” or variable elements of the schedule (e.g. environmental review CX, EA, EIS)

6. Will stakeholders receive project updates and how?

7. Will a company representative contact directly impacted property owners?

Answering “When” for BCHA 1. What is the project timeline for: Planning & Permitting, Engineering, Land Acquisition, and Construction?

There are a variety of ways to break down a project schedule. Avoid using utility terms such as engineering and design. Opt for task definitions like: project planning, permitting & approval, and construction. Are there specific project milestones? (route announcement, state utility commission ruling). In the BC example the schedule might be conveyed as: Public meeting and data gathering --- Summer 2006 Environmental Impact Statement --- Fall/Winter 2007 Commission Ruling (Approval)-- Spring 2007 Construction-- Summer/Fall 2007 and 2008

2. What is the best means to breakdown and convey the schedule? One of the issues with announcing a schedule on a fact sheet is that it is almost always WRONG. Project developers tend to be overly optimistic when predicting how long it will take to require “construction authority” (e.g. all permits received, all land rights acquired). A simple ba r chart is often used to convey the schedule. Keep the task list broad and general.

3. At what point does the line route become “definite”? If multiple routes and or non-transmission alternatives are being considered, at some point the project scope must narrowed to a single alternative. If the utility reserves the right to make that announcement, use the fact sheet to set expectations. In the BC example, it is not clear if a line route is clearly defined. Assume in this case that the Provincial Commission will issue the final permit allowing BCHA to proceed with construction. BC’s fact sheet might include, “Though the exact routing of the submarine cable is unknown at this time, BC plans to adopt the recommendation of the environmental review firm Go Green consultants and present that information to the Commission for their consideration and approval.” It is important to highlight the engagement of third party interests. Using specialized consultants tends to lend credibility to the utility’s objectives.

4. When and how will the utility engage the public? (public meetings, one-on-one meetings with landowners, key stakeholders, media campaign, customer survey, public utility commission) When preparing a fact sheet, the project team may not know the full extent of the public involvement campaign. In many cases, public involvement strategies start small (fact sheet mailers) and grow in proportion to any opposition. It is important for the utility to “go above and beyond the call of duty” when executing a public involvement plan. Avoid doing only the minimum. It is generally recommended to use 3 to 5 methods for engaging the public during the initial stages of a project announcement (e.g. mass mailing of fact sheet, open house public meeting, newspaper advertisements, utility bill inserts, contact with community leaders both elected and informal)

5. Are there “unknown” or variable elements of the schedule (e.g. environmental review CX, EA, EIS) Be clear to point out the variable components of the schedule. In most cases, time estimates for construction can be controlled while permitting and other approval processes are more difficult to estimate. Consider using a “sliding” scaled approach to estimating the timeline.

6. Will stakeholders receive project updates and how? In many cases, utilities will provide information at the front end of a project but tend to focus more attention of the day-to-day activities when becoming fully engaged in the project. Setting expectations on communication is important. Does the utility plan to issue a quarterly newsletter. Is there a project website? Will it be updated on a regular basis? If changes occur, will stakeholders be notified.

Fact Sheet Construction Outcome Answering the “What”

1. What kind of towers will be used? How tall will they be?

2. What does the finished line look like? (before and after)

3. What is the process to construct a transmission line?

4. How will line workers access the tower and other work sites?

5. Will my electric service be disrupted during construction?

6. Will there be land and or crop damage associated with construction? If so, how will the property owner be compensated for damages?

7. Will the line interfere with TV/radio reception, cellular phones, and other electronic equipment?

8. Will the line restrict the use of property underneath the line

9. Will trees be trimmed or removed? To what extent?

10. Will construction impact street traffic? If so, what is the traffic plan?

11. What is the difference between transmission and distribution wires?

12. How much will the project cost? Who will pay for the project?

Answering “What” for BCHA

1. What kind of towers will be used? How tall will they be? For an overhead project use either a picture or artist rendition to illustrate the proposed tower. For a typical wood pole project, the fact sheet might include, “the utility plans install 2-pole wooded structures that range in height from 60 to 70 feet and are spaced between 500 and 600 feet.”

2. What does the finished line look like? (before and after) Computer graphics give us the capability to illustrate the finished product well prior to construction. SCE used a photograph and superimposed an additional 500 kV line to illustrate the visual impact of a second Devers-Palo Verde circuit. Consider the public response to this photograph versus a close up photo of a 170 foot steel lattice tower.

3. What is the process to construct a transmission line? In the BC project, including photographs from the 1985 500 kV cable project might help illustrate the scope and scale of the project. For an overhead project, a project breakdown might include: 1. Access road preparation 2. Excavating foundations 3. Structure hauling and framing 4. Tower installation 5. Conductor stringing.

4. How will line workers access the tower and other work sites? Construction access is important on most project especially those that are off-road and impact agricultural lands. If the utility plans to work directly with property owners to development a “transportation plan”, use the fact sheet to convey that message. In the BC case, one might expect “BC plans to use a barge equipped with cable reel payout equipment to slowly lower the cable into position. Sonar devices will help workers guide the cable down to engineered locations at the bottom of the Strait.”

5. Will my electric service be disrupted during construction? Oftentimes it is necessary to interrupt service to customers during transitions between existing and new infrastructure. Other times, interruptions may be avoided but service reliability may be impacted. For the BC example, assume that the 138 kV line must be removed from service while the new 230 kV line is terminated. The fact sheet might include, “Near the completion of the project, there will be a short duration outage while BC workers transition service from the existing to the new transmission line. Exact dates and times will be advertised prior to the outage”

6. How much will the project cost? Who will pay for the project? It is important for customers and stakeholders to understand the financial impact of the project and how the utility plans to recover its investment. Will ratepayers or stakeholders pay for the project? Will “other” users of the transmission system share in the cost recovery? While most customers understand that utility company must recover their costs in order to remain solvent, no one like to realize increases in their utility bills. In the BC example, let’s assume that the ratepayers that live on Vancouver Island will pay for the project. The fact sheet might include, “BC expects this project to cost $204 million dollars. This investment will be spread amongst all Vancouver Island residents over the next twenty five years. Customers should expect to see a $0.07 increase on their monthly bill starting in 2009.”

Answering “What” SCE example

SCE uses computer graphics to indicate

the addition of a 500 kV line crossing

Interstate 10.

Creating a Project “Mailing List” Identifying Project Stakeholders

Step No. 1 Develop the “Internal Stakeholder” List

Stakeholder Master List

Property Owners – Directly Impacted (line route intersects)

– 500’ buffer zone

– Served by proposed substation

Elected Officials – City Mayor

– County Commissioners

– District State Representative

Permitting Authorities (derived from permit list)

– County Public Works

– US Fish & Wildlife Service

– Army Corp of Engineers

– State Dept of Ecology

– State Transportation Department

Other Utilities (route intersects or parallels)

– Petroleum pipeline

– Rural Electric Cooperative

– City Water, Sewer

– Local Cable TV/Phone

Community Groups – Environmental

Audubon Society

Home Owners Associations)

Local Bicycling Club

Citizen’s Opposed to Development (COD)

– Civic Knights of Columbus

Lion’s Club

?? Business Development ??

Other Local newspaper

Local Radio/TV

Business Park Developer

In this example,

assume that the utility

is constructing a 115 kV line

To serve a greenfield

distribution substation

Fact Sheet Summary Fact Sheet Primer

Your Homework Assignment

Must contain:

Use 4-W outline

Minimum 2 pages, 8.5x11 (A-size)

Minimum 2 graphic images (map, chart, drawing)

Use MS word or similar desktop publishing, Email is not acceptable

Things to consider:

Fact sheet “timing” is project initiation

Balance messages between utility and stakeholder “points of view”

Avoid utility jargon like the plague (the black plague)

Good Luck !!!!

Fact Sheet Primer