2011-33637. Oliver Hydro LLC; Notice of Application Tendered for Filing With the Commission, Soliciting Additional Study Requests, and Establishing Procedural Schedule for Relicensing and a Deadline for Submission of Final Amendments

Take notice that the following hydroelectric application has been filed with the Commission and is available for public inspection.

a. Type of Application: Original Major License.

b. Project No.: 13005-003.

c. Date Filed: December 14, 2011.

d. Applicant: Oliver Hydro LLC.

e. Name of Project: William Bacon Oliver Lock and Dam Hydroelectric Project.

f. Location: At the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' (Corps) William Bacon Oliver Lock and Dam on the Black Warrior River, in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama. The project would occupy 8.7 acres of United States lands administered by the Corps' Mobile District.

g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power Act 16 U.S.C. 791(a)-825(r).

h. Applicant Contact: Brent Smith, Symbiotics LLC, 371 Upper Terrace, Suite 2, Bend, OR 97702; [phone]; or email [e-mail].

i. FERC Contact: Allan Creamer, [phone]; or via email at [e-mail].

j. Cooperating agencies: Federal, state, local, and tribal agencies with jurisdiction and/or special expertise with respect to environmental issues that wish to cooperate in the preparation of the environmental document should follow the instructions for filing such requests described in item l below. Cooperating agencies should note the Commission's policy that agencies that cooperate in the preparation of the environmental document cannot also intervene. See, 94 FERC ¶ 61,076 (2001).

k. Pursuant to section 4.32(b)(7) of 18 CFR of the Commission's regulations, if any resource agency, Indian Tribe, or person believes that an additional scientific study should be conducted in order to form an adequate factual basis for a complete analysis of the application on its merit, the resource agency, Indian Tribe, or person must file a request for a study with the Commission not later than 60 days from the date of filing of the application, and serve a copy of the request on the applicant.

l. Deadline for filing additional study requests and requests for cooperating agency status: February 13, 2012.

All documents may be filed electronically via the Internet. See 18 CFR 385.2001(a)(1)(iii) and the instructions on the Commission's Web site http://www.ferc.gov/​docs-filing/​efiling.asp. Commenters can submit brief comments up to 6,000 characters, without prior registration, using the eComment system at http://www.ferc.gov/​docs-filing/​ecomment.asp. You must include your name and contact information at the end of your comments. For assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at [e-mail] or toll free at 1-[phone], or for TTY, [phone]. Although the Commission strongly encourages electronic filing, documents may also be paper-filed. To paper-file, mail an original and seven copies to: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE., Washington, DC 20426.

m. This application is not ready for environmental analysis at this time.

n. The proposed project would utilize the existing Corps' William Bacon Oliver Lock and Dam, and would consist of the following new facilities: (1) A forebay; (2) an intake structure; (3) a powerhouse containing two generating units with a total capacity of 11.72 megawatts (MW); (4) a 150-foot-long, 68-foot-wide tailrace; (5) a proposed 1.7-mile-long, 25 kilovolt (kV) transmission line; (6) a switchyard; and (7) appurtenant facilities. The proposed project would have an average annual generation of 42.6 GWh, and operate run-of-river utilizing surplus water from the William Bacon Oliver Lock & Dam, as directed by the Corps.

o. A copy of the application is available for review at the Commission in the Public Reference Room or may be viewed on the Commission's Web site at http://www.ferc.gov using the “eLibrary” link. Enter the docket number excluding the last three digits in the docket number field to access the document. For assistance, contact FERC Online Support. A copy is also available for inspection and reproduction at the address in item h above.

You may also register online at http://www.ferc.gov/​docs-filing/​esubscription.asp to be notified via email of new filings and issuances related to this or other pending projects. For assistance, contact FERC Online Support.

p. Procedural schedule and final amendments: The application will be processed according to the following Hydro Licensing Schedule. Revisions to the schedule will be made as appropriate.

Issue Deficiency Letter—March 2012

Issue Acceptance Letter—July 2012

Issue Scoping Document 1 for comments—August 2012

Request Additional Information (if necessary)—October 2012

Issue Scoping Document 2 (if necessary)—October 2012

Notice of application is ready for environmental analysis—February 2013

Notice of the availability of the draft EA—October 2013

Notice of the availability of the final EA—April 2014

Final amendments to the application must be filed with the Commission no later than 30 days from the issuance date of the notice of ready for environmental analysis.

Dated: December 23, 2011.

Kimberly D. Bose,

Secretary.