FERC rejects PacifiCorp tariff revisions on transitional withdrawal penalties

WASHINGTON, Nov 2 — The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on Nov 2 rejected PacifiCorp's proposed revisions to its interconnection agreement, which would have applied only transitional withdrawal penalties to transitional cluster study participants, finding the utility had not met the required standard.

PacifiCorp filed the revisions on Sept 3, 2026, in Docket No. ER26-3712-000. The proposal would have added a definition for "Transitional Withdrawal Penalty" to its pro forma Large Generator Interconnection Agreement (LGIA) and changed its definition of "Withdrawal Penalty," according to the order.

The commission said it disagreed with PacifiCorp that the pro forma rules are ambiguous. It found that any interconnection customer that executes an LGIA, including customers studied through the transitional cluster study process, is subject to the standard withdrawal penalty of 20% of identified network upgrade costs.

Under the transitional procedures, the withdrawal penalty is nine times the study cost, the order said.

PacifiCorp had said it consistently told customers that transitional penalties would apply throughout the transition cluster process, including after LGIA execution, and that upending their expectations could disrupt its processing of the transitional cluster. The commission said those arguments were not sufficient and that PacifiCorp had not explained how its revisions would address concerns about late-stage withdrawals.

No interventions or protests were filed by the Sept 24, 2026 deadline, the order said.

"Today's order rejects an unprotested filing on the basis that the relevant tariffs unambiguously require us to do so. With respect, they do not," Commissioner Lindsay S. See wrote in a dissent.

The commission issued Order No. 2023 on July 28, 2023, and accepted in part PacifiCorp's compliance filing on May 15, 2025.