Energy Regulatory

Pillsbury's regulatory team offers a full array of legal services in connection with FERC regulation, including preparation of filings, evidentiary hearings, court appeals, settlement proceedings, technical conferences, rulemakings and informal meetings. We have led district court litigation related to federal regulatory issues and appellate reviews of lower court decisions and agency orders.

Relationships that Matter
The Energy Regulatory Group represents clients in the full array of proceedings before FERC. Our relationships extend to consultants and expert witnesses on topics such as rate and economic analyses, engineering feasibility reports and market studies. And when a client’s needs dictate, we team with Pillsbury attorneys in related practice areas such as finance, litigation, real estate, environment, land use and natural resources.

Broad Experience
The lawyers in our Energy Regulatory Group have extensive experience in proceedings under the Federal Power Act, the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935, the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 2005, the Public Utilities Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (PURPA) and the Energy Policy Act of 2005 involving approvals of energy company mergers and acquisitions; transmission rates; terms and conditions of service; market-based rate applications for electric utilities and energy merchants and marketers; and applications for qualifying facility certification and exempt wholesale generator determinations. Our lawyers also handle district court litigation related to federal regulatory issues and appellate cases arising from review of lower court decisions and agency orders.

Electric Rates
Ratemaking rulings are critically important to our public utility clients. We work closely with a client’s management team and rate experts to develop a rate case strategy that advances the client’s business objectives. With a plan in place, we use our extensive experience with virtually every aspect of ratemaking before FERC to see the plan through to a successful conclusion. In addition to traditional embedded cost of service ratemaking (and related accounting issues), we have represented utilities in numerous non-traditional ratemaking cases involving incremental cost rates, opportunity cost rates and market-based rates.

Transactions
The attorneys of the Energy Regulatory Group bring their regulatory counseling experience to bear on the structuring of transactions to comply with regulatory requirements, in performing regulatory due diligence and in obtaining regulatory approvals. Our deep familiarity with the energy industry assists buyers, sellers and marketers in the development and negotiation of virtually every kind of wholesale power transaction.

RTOs & ISOs
Independent system operators (ISOs) and regional transmission organizations (RTOs) have changed the way utilities and independent generators operate. Pillsbury’s Energy Regulatory Group has advised a number of clients on transmission rate and market design issues associated with RTOs and ISOs as well as governance, transmission ratemaking (including incentive ratemaking), planning, market design and market monitoring. Our experience extends to all of the major ISOs and RTOs: California ISO, Midwest ISO, ISO New England, PJM Interconnection, New York ISO, Electric Reliability Council of Texas and Southwest Power Pool.

Qualifying Facilities under PURPA
The firm represents clients before FERC and the courts in connection with the development, operation, and sale of power from qualifying cogeneration and small power production facilities (QFs) pursuant to PURPA.

Transmission Access & Pricing
Our attorneys have participated in numerous proceedings before FERC that established pricing policies and access rules. This experience informs our counsel to clients regarding a wide variety of issues involving the rates and terms under which transmission-owning utilities must offer service.

Rulemaking & Compliance
Having been involved directly in many of the major FERC rulemaking proceedings of the past decade, our Energy Regulatory team has a comprehensive understanding of the regulatory environment that electric industry clients face, and is well positioned to advise them on compliance with FERC’s rules, including its increasingly stringent oversight and enforcement.

Recent Representative Matters

• Advising an independent wind power qualifying facility in a complaint proceeding at FERC regarding the proper implementation of Southwest Power Pool’s tariff in light of PURPA.
• Representing Neptune Regional Transmission System, LLC in obtaining regulatory approvals from FERC. The company is developing a 65-mile, 660-MW undersea high voltage direct current (HVDC) electric transmission line connecting PJM and New York ISO.
• Representing New England Independent Transmission Company, the first independent transmission company in New England, in negotiating agreements with and approvals from New England ISO and in obtaining regulatory approvals from FERC.
• Acting as FERC regulatory counsel to Chevron U.S.A. Inc. in the merger between Dynegy, Inc. and LS Power Development.
• Advising an international developer and generation utility on trends in power purchase agreements in the United States.
• Representing an investor-owned utility in negotiations of power purchase agreements with an independent power producer.
• Representing an independent power project investor in PJM in obtaining regulatory approvals and making rate filings with FERC.