Atlantic Wind Lease Sale 8 (ATLW-8) for Commercial Leasing for Wind Power on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) in the New York (NY) Bight-Final Sale Notice (FSN)
| Citation | 87 FR 2446 |
| Published date | 14 January 2022 |
| Record Number | 2022-00504 |
| Section | Notices |
| Court | Ocean Energy Management Bureau |
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Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 10 / Friday, January 14, 2022 / Notices
instructions. Additionally, if you go to
the online docket and sign up for email
alerts, you will be notified when
comments are posted.
We accept anonymous comments. All
comments received will be posted
without change to https://
www.regulations.gov and will include
any personal information you have
provided. For more about privacy and
submissions in response to this
document, see DHS’s eRulemaking
System of Records notice (85 FR 14226,
March 11, 2020).
Information Collection Request
Title: State Access to the Oil Spill
Liability Trust Fund for Removal Costs
under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990.
OMB Control Number: 1625–0068.
Summary: This information collection
is the mechanism for a Governor, or
their designated representative, of a
state to make a request for payment from
the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund
(OSLTF) in an amount not to exceed
$250,000 for removal cost consistent
with the National Contingency Plan
required for the immediate removal of a
discharge, or the mitigation or
prevention of a substantial threat of
discharge, of oil.
Need: This information collection is
required by, 33 CFR part 133, for
implementing 33 U.S.C. 2712(d)(1) of
the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA 90).
The information provided by the State
to the National Pollution Fund Center
(NPFC)is used to determine whether
expenditures submitted by the state to
the OSLTF are compensable, and, where
compensable, to ensure the correct
amount of reimbursement is made by
the OSLTF to the state. If the
information is not collected, the Coast
Guard and the National Pollution Funds
Center will be unable to justify the
resulting expenditures, and thus be
unable to recover costs from the parties
responsible for the spill when they can
be identified.
Forms: None.
Respondents: Governor of a state or
their designated representative.
Frequency: On occasion.
Hour Burden Estimate: The estimated
burden of 3 hours a year remains
unchanged.
Authority: The Paperwork Reduction
Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C. chapter 35, as
amended.
Dated: January 11, 2022.
Kathleen Claffie,
Chief, Office of Privacy Management, U.S.
Coast Guard.
[FR Doc. 2022–00693 Filed 1–13–22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9110–04–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[212.LLIDB00000.L12200000.DA0000]
Notice of Closure on Public Lands in
Boise County, Idaho
AGENCY
: Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION
: Notice of closure.
SUMMARY
: Notice is hereby given that
the Skinny Dipper Hot Springs, located
on public lands administered by the
Four Rivers Field Office, Bureau of Land
Management (BLM), is closed to all
uses.
DATES
: The Skinny Dipper Hot Springs
closure will be in effect for five years
from 12:01 a.m., February 14, 2022, or
until rescinded or modified by the
authorized officer or designated Federal
officer, whichever is earlier.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
:
Brent Ralston, Four Rivers Field
Manager, 3948 Development Avenue,
Boise, Idaho 83705, email bralston@
blm.gov, or phone (208) 384–3300.
Persons who use a telecommunications
device for the deaf (TDD) may call the
Federal Relay Service (FRS) at (800)
877–8339 to contact Mr. Ralston. The
FRS is available 24 hours a day, seven
days a week, to leave a message or
question with Mr. Ralston. You will
receive a reply during normal hours.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
: The
closure affects public lands including
and surrounding Skinny Dipper Hot
Springs, located approximately 4 miles
east of Banks, Idaho. The affected public
lands are: All public land north of Idaho
State Highway 17, also known as the
Banks-Lowman Highway, in Lot 3;
Section 25, T. 9 N., R. 3 E., Boise
Meridian, Boise County, Idaho,
containing approximately 41.58 acres.
The closure is necessary to allow the
BLM to provide for public health and
safety and continue to rehabilitate and
restore natural conditions damaged by
unauthorized use and development
around the hot springs.
The BLM will post closure signs at
main access points to the closed area
and the area used for parking located
adjacent to the highway. This closure
order will be posted in the Boise District
BLM office. Maps of the affected area
and other documents associated with
this closure are available at Four Rivers
Field Office, 3948 Development
Avenue, Boise, Idaho 83705 and online
at https://go.usa.gov/x6MgS.
Exemptions: The following persons
are exempt from this order: Federal,
State, and local officers and employees
in the performance of their official
duties; members of organized rescue or
fire-fighting forces in the performance of
their official duties; and persons with
written authorization from the BLM’s
Four Rivers Field Office.
Enforcement: Any person who
violates this closure may be tried before
a United States Magistrate and fined in
accordance with 18 U.S.C. 3571,
imprisoned no more than 12 months
under 43 U.S.C. 1733(a) and 43 CFR
8360.0–7, or both. In accordance with
43 CFR 8365.1–7, State or local officials
may also impose penalties for violations
of Idaho law.
Authority: 43 CFR 8364.1.
Tanya M. Thrift,
Boise District Manager (Acting).
[FR Doc. 2022–00403 Filed 1–13–22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4331–11–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management
[Docket No. BOEM–2022–0001]
Atlantic Wind Lease Sale 8 (ATLW–8)
for Commercial Leasing for Wind
Power on the Outer Continental Shelf
(OCS) in the New York (NY) Bight—
Final Sale Notice (FSN)
AGENCY
: Bureau of Ocean Energy
Management, Interior.
ACTION
: Final sale notice.
SUMMARY
: This FSN contains
information pertaining to the areas
available for commercial wind energy
leasing on the OCS in the NY Bight.
Specifically, this FSN details certain
provisions and conditions of the leases,
auction details, the lease form, criteria
for evaluating competing bids, award
procedures, appeal procedures, and
lease execution. The Bureau of Ocean
Energy Management (BOEM) will offer
six leases: Lease OCS–A 0537, Lease
OCS–A 0538, Lease OCS–A 0539, Lease
OCS–A 0541, Lease OCS–A 0542, and
Lease OCS–A 0544 (Lease Areas). The
issuance of any lease resulting from this
sale would not constitute an approval of
project-specific plans to develop
offshore wind energy. Such plans, if
submitted by the lessee, would be
subject to subsequent environmental,
technical, and public reviews prior to a
decision on whether the proposed
development should be authorized.
DATES
: BOEM will hold an online mock
auction for potential bidders starting at
9:00 a.m. eastern standard time (EST) on
February 18, 2022. The monetary
auction will be held online and will
begin at 9:00 a.m. EST on February 23,
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2022. Additional details are provided in
the section entitled ‘‘Deadlines and
Milestones for Bidders.’’
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
:
Luke Feinberg, BOEM Office of
Renewable Energy Programs, 45600
Woodland Road, VAM–OREP, Sterling,
Virginia 20166, (571) 474–7616, or
luke.feinberg@boem.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
:
I. Background: BOEM published a
Call for Information and Nominations
(Call) for an area of 1,735,154 acres in
the NY Bight in April of 2018 (83 FR
15602). Based on the information
received in response to that notice and
consultation with ocean users, BOEM
identified Wind Energy Areas (WEA) in
March 2021 encompassing 807,383
acres. This lease sale was proposed by
BOEM on June 14, 2021, through a
Proposed Sale Notice (PSN), which
encompassed 627,331 acres and was
published in the Federal Register (86
FR 31524). A 60-day comment period
followed. BOEM received 134 comment
submissions in response to the PSN,
which are available on regulations.gov
(Docket ID: BOEM–2021–0033) at:
https://www.regulations.gov/document/
BOEM-2021-0033-0001. BOEM has
posted its responses to comments
submitted during the PSN comment
period. The document, entitled
Response to Comments, can be found
through BOEM’s website at: https://
www.boem.gov/Commercial-Wind-
Leasing/NYBight/.
In response to the comments received,
BOEM made several changes from the
description of the NY Bight lease sale
that was published in the PSN. The
primary change is a reorientation of
lease area boundaries resulting in six
areas being offered for sale, which is
further explained in Section IV—Area
Offered for Leasing. Overall, BOEM has
deconflicted and reduced the initial
1,735,154 acres proposed in the Call by
72% to 488,201 acres offered for sale
through this notice, including most
recently a 22% reduction from the total
lease acreage in the PSN to the final
lease acreage in this FSN. This final
reduction culminated an effort to
address concerns raised by Tribes,
partnering agencies, and the public
through the comment period and
targeted outreach. In addition, a number
of lease stipulations were developed, or
refined, based on feedback solicited in
the PSN, including provisions to:
advance engagement and coordination
with federally recognized Tribes, ocean
users, other agencies, underserved
communities, and other interested
stakeholders; advance flexibility in
transmission planning; advance the
domestic supply chain; and promote the
use of project labor agreements (PLAs).
In response to feedback from the PSN,
BOEM will also limit the number of
leases that any bidder can win to one.
II. List of Eligible Bidders: BOEM has
determined that the following 25
entities are legally, technically, and
financially qualified to hold a
commercial wind lease in the NY Bight
pursuant to 30 CFR 585.106 and 107,
and therefore, may participate in this
lease sale as bidders subject to meeting
the requirements outlined in this notice:
Company name Company
No.
547 Energy LLC ...................................... 15123
Arevia Power LLC ................................... 15129
Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind Bight,
LLC ...................................................... 15119
Attentive Energy LLC .............................. 15115
Avangrid Renewables, LLC ..................... 15019
Bight Wind Holdings, LLC ....................... 15112
BP US Offshore Wind Energy LLC ......... 15122
CPV Offshore Wind LP ........................... 15114
Diamond Wind North America, LLC ........ 15113
East Wind LLC ........................................ 15076
EDF Renewables Development, Inc ....... 15027
Equinor Wind US LLC ............................. 15058
GIG Infrastructure HoldCo, LLC .............. 15125
GW Offshore Wind LLC .......................... 15121
Horizon Wind Power LLC ........................ 15081
Invenergy Wind Offshore LLC ................. 15091
Mid-Atlantic Offshore Wind LLC .............. 15118
OW Ocean Winds East, LLC .................. 15096
PNE USA, Inc ......................................... 15056
PSEG Renewable Generation LLC ......... 15132
RWE Offshore Wind Holdings, LLC ........ 15061
SSE Renewables North America Off-
shore Wind LLC ................................... 15124
US Mainstream Offshore LLC ................. 15120
US Mainstream Renewable Power Inc ... 15089
US Wind Inc ............................................ 15023
a. Affiliated Entities: On the Bidder’s
Financial Form (BFF) discussed below,
eligible bidders must list any eligible
bidders with whom they are affiliated.
Affiliated eligible bidders are not
permitted to compete against each other
in the lease sale and must decide by the
start of the auction which eligible
bidder (if any) will participate. One
bidder may bid on behalf of a planned
joint entity provided the other entity is
not a participant in the lease sale. If two
or more affiliated bidders participate in
the auction, BOEM may disqualify some
or all such bidders from the auction.
BOEM considers two entities to be
affiliated if they meet the definition of
affiliate in 30 CFR 1206.20, as
applicable, or if they are both direct, or
indirect, subsidiaries of the same parent
company.
III. Deadlines and Milestones for
Bidders: This section describes the
major deadlines and milestones in the
auction process from publication of this
FSN to execution of the lease pursuant
to this sale. These are organized into
various stages: The FSN Waiting Period;
Conducting the Auction; and From the
Auction to Lease Execution.
a. FSN Waiting Period:
i. Bidder’s Financial Form: Each
bidder must submit a BFF to BOEM to
participate in the auction. BOEM must
receive each BFF no later than January
26, 2022. If a bidder does not submit a
BFF by this deadline, BOEM, in its sole
discretion, may grant an extension to
that bidder only if BOEM determines
the bidder’s failure to timely submit a
BFF was caused by events beyond the
bidder’s control. The BFF can be
downloaded at: https://www.boem.gov/
renewable-energy/state-activities/new-
york-bight. Once BOEM has processed a
BFF, the bidder may log into pay.gov
and submit a bid deposit. For purposes
of this auction, BOEM will not consider
any BFFs submitted by bidders for
previous lease sales. BOEM will only
accept an originally executed paper
copy of the BFF. The BFF must be
executed by an authorized
representative listed on the bidder’s
legal qualifications. Each bidder is
required to sign the self-certification in
the BFF, in accordance with 18 U.S.C.
1001 (Fraud and False Statements).
ii. Bid Deposit: Each bidder must
provide a bid deposit of $5,000,000 no
later than February 9, 2022 in order to
participate in the mock auction and the
monetary auction. BOEM will consider
extensions to this deadline only if
BOEM determines that the failure to
timely submit the bid deposit was
caused by events beyond the bidder’s
control. Further information about bid
deposits can be found in the ‘‘Bid
Deposit’’ section of this notice.
b. Conducting the Auction:
i. Mock Auction: BOEM will hold a
Mock Auction on February 18, 2022
beginning at 9:00 a.m. EST. The Mock
Auction will be held online. BOEM will
contact each bidder that has timely filed
a BFF and bid deposit and provide
instructions for participation. Only
bidders that have timely submitted BFFs
and bid deposits may participate in the
Mock Auction.
ii. Monetary Auction: On February 23,
2022, BOEM, through its contractor, will
hold the auction. The first round of the
auction will start at 9:00 a.m. EST. The
auction will proceed electronically
according to a schedule to be distributed
by the BOEM Auction Manager at the
time of the auction. BOEM anticipates
that the auction will last 1-business day,
but it may continue on consecutive
business days, as necessary, until the
auction ends in accordance with the
procedures described in the ‘‘Auction
Procedures’’ section of this notice.
iii. Announce Provisional Winners:
BOEM will announce the provisional
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winners of the lease sale after the
auction ends.
c. From the Auction to Lease
Execution:
i. Refund Non-Winners: Once the
provisional winners have been
announced, BOEM will return the non-
winners’ bid deposits.
ii. Department of Justice (DOJ)
Review: DOJ will have 30 days in which
to conduct an antitrust review of the
auction, pursuant to 43 U.S.C 1337(c).
iii. Delivery of the Lease: BOEM will
send three lease copies to each winner,
with instructions for executing the
lease. The first year’s rent is due 45-
calendar days after the winners receive
the lease copies for execution.
iv. Return the Lease: Within 10-
business days of receiving the lease
copies, the auction winners must post
financial assurance, pay any
outstanding balance of their bonus bids
(i.e., winning monetary bid minus
applicable bid deposit), and sign and
return the three executed lease copies.
The winners may request extensions to
the 10-day deadline, and BOEM may
grant such extensions if BOEM
determines the delay to be caused by
events beyond the requesting winner’s
control, pursuant to 30 CFR 585.224(e).
v. Execution of Lease: Once BOEM
has received the signed lease copies and
verified that all other required materials
have been received, BOEM will make a
final determination regarding its
issuance of the leases and will execute
the leases, if appropriate.
IV. Area Offered for Leasing: In
response to comments received on the
PSN and consultation with Federal
agencies, BOEM is offering six lease
areas totaling 488,201 acres for sale
through this notice (Figure 1). The eight
areas in the PSN have been reoriented
and reduced by 22% to address ocean
user conflicts in response to comments
and input from ocean users, including
the fishing industry, the U.S. Coast
Guard (USCG) and navigation interests,
the National Marine Fisheries Service
(NMFS), and the Department of Defense
(DOD). Lease Area OCS–A 0543 as
identified in the PSN will not be offered
for leasing at this time in response to
issues raised by the fishing industry and
DOD, as well as to allow for increased
flexibility in the ongoing siting of an
adjacent fairway proposed by the USCG.
If circumstances change, BOEM may
reconsider this area in a future sale. In
addition, at this time, BOEM decided to
remove from leasing consideration
several areas that overlap with both
fishing activity and seafloor features
identified by NMFS and other
stakeholders as potentially sensitive to
impacts from offshore wind facility
construction. These removals reduced
the viability of OCS–A 0540 as a
standalone Lease Area. Therefore,
BOEM expanded the western boundary
of OCS–A 0539 and removed proposed
lease OCS–A 0540. The removal of
OCS–A 0543 also negated the
justification for the area formerly called
a ‘‘transit corridor’’ (running southwest
by northeast) between what was
previously OCS–A 0543 and OCS–A
0540. The removal of this transit
corridor allowed for a westward
expansion of the boundaries of OCS–A
0541 and OCS–A 0542, as depicted in
the map of the areas linked below.
Comments received regarding fishing
activity and seafloor features also
resulted in no leases being offered
within 2.5 nautical miles (nmi) of the
Mid-Atlantic Scallop Access Area.
The area available for sale will be
auctioned as six leases:
T
ABLE
1
TO
S
ECTION
IV—ATLW–8 F
INAL
L
EASE
A
REAS
Lease Total acres
No surface
occupancy
(acres)
Lease OCS–A 0537 ................................................................................................................................................. 71,522 ........................
Lease OCS–A 0538 ................................................................................................................................................. 84,332 12,810
Lease OCS–A 0539 ................................................................................................................................................. 125,964 11,687
Lease OCS–A 0541 ................................................................................................................................................. 79,351 3,212
Lease OCS–A 0542 ................................................................................................................................................. 83,976 7,082
Lease OCS–A 0544 ................................................................................................................................................. 43,056
BILLING CODE 4310–MR–P
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BILLING CODE 4310–MR–C
a. Transit Corridors: In the PSN,
BOEM solicited comments on proposed
transit corridors in Hudson South.
USCG pointed out that the term ‘‘transit
corridor’’ is not defined or recognized in
law, regulation, or international
convention. As such, the use of the term
will likely add confusion. BOEM will
not use the term in this sale or future
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New
Jersey
ATLW-8 Lease Areas
New York
Figure 1 to Section IV -ATLW-8 Final Lease Areas
~
No Surface Occupancy
D ATLW-8 Lease Areas
OCS Blocks
I•••
I
, • Protraction Diagram
I
•••
I
0 5 10 15 20
I I I
Nautical Miles
OREP-2021-1042
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lease sales or other actions. The
remaining feedback BOEM received
through PSN comments and meetings
with the fishing community was largely
positive. Therefore, the following lease
areas have 2.44 nmi of unleased ocean
space between them: OCS–A 0538 and
OCS–A 0539 as well as between OCS–
A 0539 and OCS–A0541/OCS–A 0542.
These areas remain open ocean in
which BOEM is not offering a lease. The
Permanent International Association of
Navigation Congresses World
Association of Waterborne Transport
Infrastructure and Maritime Institute
Netherlands calculations and guidelines
as well as the USCG draft Port Access
Route Study (USCG–2020–0172) were
used to inform our analysis. We note
that the USCG draft Port Access Route
Study (USCG–2020–0172) suggests that
formal establishment of shipping safety
fairways or other routing measures
within a wind farm are not necessary to
facilitate safe transit.
b. Areas of No Surface Occupancy:
BOEM generally does not lease in
increments smaller than an aliquot,
which is defined as 1/16th of an OCS
lease block (2,304 hectares or 5,693.29
acres). To accommodate the desired
distances between surface structures,
select portions of the lease areas in the
Hudson South WEA (OCS–A 0538,
0539, 0541, 0542) will be offered for
sale, but no surface occupancy will be
permitted, as described in Addendum A
of each respective lease.
c. Habitat Avoidance and Facilitating
Fishing Vessel Activity: Commenters
recommended that BOEM remove from
leasing consideration habitat features
that could be adversely impacted by
future offshore wind facility
development. These areas were
primarily represented by the New Jersey
Department of Environmental
Protection’s ‘‘Prime Fishing Area’’ data.
Additionally, fishers have requested
that offshore wind facilities be designed
in a manner that, among other things,
provides for safe transit and fishing
through and adjacent to future offshore
wind facilities. In the Hudson South
and the Central Bight WEAs, BOEM
removed from leasing consideration
areas that met these multiple avoidance
recommendations. In Hudson South,
BOEM removed areas adjacent to the
Mid-Atlantic Scallop Access Area and
areas to the west of OCS–A 0539 that are
fished by the Atlantic surfclam fishery.
In the Central Bight WEA, the southern
portion of OCS–A 0537 was removed
due to multiple factors, including
fishing activity and seafloor features.
d. Map of the Area Offered for
Leasing: A map of the Lease Areas, and
GIS spatial files X, Y (eastings,
northings) UTM Zone 18, NAD83
Datum, and geographic X, Y (longitude,
latitude), NAD83 Datum can be found
on BOEM’s website at: https://
www.boem.gov/renewable-energy/state-
activities/new-york-bight. A large-scale
map of the Lease Areas, showing
boundaries of the area with numbered
blocks, is available from BOEM upon
request at the following address: Bureau
of Ocean Energy Management, Office of
Renewable Energy Programs, 45600
Woodland Road, VAM–OREP, Sterling,
Virginia 20166, Phone: (703) 787–1300,
Fax: (703) 787–1708.
V. Environmental Review: On August
10, 2021, BOEM announced the
availability of a draft Environmental
Assessment (EA) that assesses the
potential impacts of the issuance of
commercial and research leases within
the identified WEAs of the NY Bight,
and the granting of rights-of-way and
rights-of-use and easement in the region.
The EA focuses on potential
environmental consequences of site
characterization activities and site
assessment activities. The EA also
considers project easements associated
with each potential lease issued and
grants for subsea cable corridors in the
NY Bight. The availability of the Final
EA and Finding of No Significant
Impact was announced on December 16,
2021. BOEM determined that the
Proposed Action would not cause any
significant impacts and implementing
the Proposed Action does not constitute
a major Federal action significantly
affecting the quality of the human
environment within the meaning of
section 102(2)(c) of the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969.
BOEM will conduct additional
environmental reviews upon receipt of
a lessee’s proposed project-specific
plans, such as a Site Assessment Plan
(SAP) or Construction and Operations
Plan (COP).
VI. New and Modified Lease
Stipulations: Based on feedback
provided, BOEM is adding lease
stipulations that, though discussed
conceptually, were not explicitly
proposed in the lease packages
associated with the PSN. BOEM also is
refining certain stipulations in the PSN
and previous lease packages.
a. Reporting requirements: In an effort
to require early and regular engagement
with Tribes and ocean users,
underserved communities, and other
stakeholders (collectively ‘‘Tribes and
parties’’) that may be potentially
affected by the project activities on the
OCS, BOEM is building upon an
existing lease stipulation to require a
semi-annual progress report. Within the
progress report, Lessees will identify
Tribes and parties potentially affected
by proposed activities and provide
updates on engagement activities,
impacts on or benefits to the Tribes and
parties due to the proposed activities,
and how, if at all, a project has been
informed or altered to address those
challenges or benefits, as well as any
planned engagement activities during
the next reporting period. In
acknowledgment of the existing and
growing consultation burden placed on
many of the Tribes and parties, the
stipulation also requires, to the
maximum extent practicable, that
Lessees coordinate with one another on
engagement activities. It is BOEM’s
intention that this requirement to
coordinate engagement apply not only
to meetings proposed by Lessees, but
also to reasonable requests to coordinate
engagement requested by Tribes and
parties. In addition, the stipulation
requires that the progress report
incorporate separate lease requirements
for the development of communication
plans for fisheries (Fisheries
Communication Plan (FCP)), Tribes
(Native American Tribes
Communication Plan), and agencies
(Agency Communication Plan), which
serve to guide engagement activities
with those groups. Consistent with
current practice, the FCP is a
requirement of the lease; however,
BOEM has added additional elements to
include in the FCP based on comments
received. Lastly, the progress report
must also include an update on
activities executed under any survey
plan.
b. Transmission Planning: BOEM is
continuing a planned approach to
transmission and is evaluating options
including the use of cable corridors,
regional transmission systems, meshed
systems, and other mechanisms.
Therefore, BOEM may condition COP
approval on the incorporation of such
methods where appropriate. BOEM
encourages those who obtain leases
from this sale to engage in early
coordination with adjacent lessees,
states, Tribal Nations, and other ocean
users to identify ways to minimize
impacts from transmission. In addition,
BOEM has modified the lease
stipulations concerning communication
with Tribal Nations and parties to
explicitly seek input and discussion
surrounding transmission easements
prior to proposing such easements.
c. Birds and Bats: During Endangered
Species Act (ESA) consultation, the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service recommended
in its October 15, 2021, letter to BOEM
the installation of automated Motus
telemetry tracking stations on
meteorological buoys to help address
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information gaps on offshore
movements of birds and bats, including
ESA-listed species. Therefore, BOEM is
including a stipulation requiring the use
of such tracking stations.
d. Project Labor Agreements and
Supply Chain: BOEM is committed to a
clean energy future, workforce
development and safety, and
establishment of a durable domestic
supply chain that can sustain the U.S.
offshore wind energy industry. To
advance this vision, BOEM has included
three lease stipulations in the NY Bight
FSN that will encourage union-built
projects and contribute towards
establishing a domestic supply chain:
i. The first stipulation requires lessees
to make every reasonable effort to enter
a project labor agreement covering the
construction stage of any project
proposed for the Lease Areas.
ii. The second stipulation requires
lessees to establish a statement of goals
in which the lessee will describe its
plans for contributing to the creation of
a robust and resilient U.S.-based
offshore wind industry supply chain.
The lessee must provide regular
progress updates to BOEM, and BOEM
will make those updates publicly
available.
iii. The last stipulation incentivizes
the lessee to procure major offshore
wind energy components domestically.
For the Lease Areas, BOEM will set the
fee rate at 0.02 (i.e., 2%) for the entire
life of commercial operations. Should
the lessee satisfy the terms of the
stipulation by meaningfully and
substantially assembling or
manufacturing major components in the
United States, they may be eligible for
a 1% operating fee rate for a period of
five years.
e. Surface Structure Layout and
Orientation: Where one lease abuts a
neighboring BOEM lease area, each
lessee must endeavor to implement a
layout of surface structures that
facilitates full enjoyment of the lease
and allows for a structure layout that
contains two common lines of
orientation across the adjacent leases (as
described in Navigation and Vessel
Inspection Circular 01–19). Where such
a design cannot be agreed upon among
adjacent lessees, each lessee will be
required to incorporate a 1-nmi setback
from the boundary with the neighboring
lease where no surface structures will be
permitted.
f. Endangered Species Act
Programmatic Consultation: BOEM has
completed a programmatic consultation
with the NMFS under section 7 of the
ESA. Federal partners that were co-
action agencies on the programmatic
consultation include the Bureau of
Safety and Environmental Enforcement,
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
On June 29, 2021, NMFS issued a Letter
of Concurrence under the ESA (https://
www.boem.gov/renewable-energy/final-
nlaa-osw-programmatic) that covers site
characterization (high resolution
geophysical (HRG), geotechnical, and
biological surveys) and site assessment
and data collection (deployment,
operation, and retrieval of
meteorological and oceanographic data
buoys) activities associated with
Atlantic OCS leases. As a result of this
consultation, project design criteria
(PDCs) and best management practices
(BMPs) associated with the mitigation,
monitoring, and reporting conditions
have been developed for those data
collection activities covered in the
consultation. The PDCs and BMPs
pertain to mitigation, monitoring, and
reporting conditions for reducing noise
exposure to protected species from HRG
surveys, avoiding vessel interactions
with protected species, and mooring
design and marine debris requirements
to avoid entanglement of listed species.
Similar to the requirements for
threatened and endangered species and
critical habitat under the ESA, BOEM
requires mitigation, monitoring, and
reporting conditions for all marine
mammals. These PDCs and BMPs will
be lease requirements for NY Bight OCS
leasing activities and are found in the
document Project Design Criteria and
Best Management Practices for Data
Collection Associated with Atlantic
Offshore Wind Leases found at: https://
www.boem.gov/renewable-energy/nmfs-
esa-consultations.
VII. Potential Future Restrictions:
Prospective bidders should be aware of
potential conflicts with existing uses of
the OCS by the DOD and USCG, among
others. BOEM coordinates with the DOD
and USCG throughout our leasing
process. A December 2020 letter from
the DOD summarizes our most recent
consultations and is available at: https://
www.boem.gov/sites/default/files/
documents/renewable-energy/state-
activities/PUBLIC-NY-Bight-DOD.pdf.
a. Height Restrictions: Development of
Lease Areas in the Hudson South WEA
could adversely affect U.S. Air Force
Weather Division’s Next Generation
Weather Radar by limiting the ability to
track tropical storms moving towards
the region if turbine heights exceed
1,000 feet; however, DOD has informed
BOEM that more analysis is needed on
specific project proposals to determine
the extent of interference, if any. Lessees
will be expected to coordinate with the
DOD Military Aviation and Installation
Assurance Siting Clearinghouse as they
design their proposed facilities to assess
the impact on radar operations. If
interference from turbines heights
greater than 1,000 feet is identified, the
DOD has indicated a condition of COP
approval may be necessary that would
require curtailment during severe
weather events.
b. Air Surveillance and Radar: The
North American Aerospace Defense
Command mission may be affected by
the development of the Lease Areas.
Lessees will be expected to coordinate
with the DOD Military Aviation and
Installation Assurance Siting
Clearinghouse as they design their
proposed facilities to assess the level of
impact on radar operations. Mitigation
measures or conditions of a COP
approval may necessitate mitigation of
the identified interference.
c. Potential Future Conflicts with
OCS–A 0544: The PSN identified a
potential conflict in the Hudson North
WEA (OCS–A 0544) with a new
shipping safety fairway designation, as
proposed by USCG, to accommodate
vessel traffic travelling across the NY
Bight from the Delaware Bay area to east
of Montauk. The USCG published a
final Port Access Route Study on
January 3, 2022 that proposed an
adjusted fairway route that avoids this
conflict. Potential bidders should be
aware that there could be future changes
or necessary mitigation measures
relating to the developable area of the
lease if the proposed fairway route is
adjusted during the USCG’s subsequent
fairway rulemaking process.
VIII. Lease Terms and Conditions:
BOEM has included terms, conditions,
and stipulations for the OCS
commercial wind leases to be offered
through this sale. After the leases are
issued, BOEM reserves the right to
require compliance with additional
terms and conditions associated with
approval of a SAP or COP. The leases
are available on BOEM’s website at:
https://www.boem.gov/renewable-
energy/state-activities/new-york-bight.
The leases include the following five
attachments:
•Addendum ‘‘A’’ (Description of
Leased Area and Lease Activities);
•Addendum ‘‘B’’ (Lease Term and
Financial Schedule);
•Addendum ‘‘C’’ (Lease Specific
Terms, Conditions, and Stipulations);
•Addendum ‘‘D’’ (Project Easement);
and
•Addendum ‘‘E’’ (Rent Schedule).
Addenda ‘‘A,’’ ‘‘B,’’ and ‘‘C’’ provide
detailed descriptions of lease terms and
conditions. Addenda ‘‘D’’ and ‘‘E’’ will
be completed at the time of COP
approval or approval with
modifications.
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The most recent version of BOEM’s
renewable energy commercial lease
form (BOEM–0008) is available on
BOEM’s website at: http://
www.boem.gov/BOEM-OCS-Operation-
Forms/.
Pursuant to 30 CFR 585.601, a
leaseholder wishing to submit a SAP
must do so within 12 months of lease
issuance. If the lessee intends to
continue to hold the lease into its
operations term, the lessee must submit
a COP at least 6 months before the end
of the site assessment term.
IX. Financial Terms and Conditions:
This section provides an overview of the
annual payments required of the lessee
that will be fully described in the lease,
and the financial assurance
requirements that will be associated
with the lease.
a. Rent: Pursuant to 30 CFR
585.224(b) and 585.503, the first year’s
rent payment of $3 per acre is due
within 45-calendar days of the date the
lessee receives the lease for execution.
Thereafter, annual rent payments are
due on the anniversary of the effective
date of the lease as defined in 30 CFR
585.237 (the ‘‘Lease Anniversary’’).
Once commercial operations under the
lease begin, BOEM will charge rent only
for the portions of the lease remaining
undeveloped (i.e., non-operating
acreage). For a 71,522 acre lease (the
size of OCS–A 0537), the rent payment
will be $214,566 per year if no portion
of the lease area is authorized for
commercial operations.
If the lessee submits an application
for relinquishment of a portion of its
leased area within the first 45-calendar
days following the date that the lease is
received by the lessee for execution, and
BOEM approves that application, no
rent payment will be due on the
relinquished portion of the lease area.
Later relinquishments of any portion of
the lease area will reduce the lessee’s
rent payments starting in the year
following BOEM’s approval of the
relinquishment. The lessee must also
pay rent for any project easement
associated with the lease, commencing
on the date that BOEM approves the
COP (or modification thereof) that
describes the project easement as
outlined in 30 CFR 585.508. Annual
rent for a project easement that is 200
feet wide and centered on the
transmission cable is $70 per statute
mile. For any additional acreage
required, the lessee must also pay the
greater of $5 per acre per year or $450
per year.
b. Operating Fee: For purposes of
calculating the initial annual operating
fee payment pursuant to 30 CFR
585.506, BOEM applies an operating fee
rate to a proxy for the wholesale market
value of the electricity expected to be
generated from the project during its
first 12 months of operations. This
initial payment will be prorated to
reflect the period between the
commencement of commercial
operations and the Lease Anniversary.
The initial annual operating fee
payment is due within 45 days of the
commencement of commercial
operations. Thereafter, subsequent
annual operating fee payments are due
on or before the Lease Anniversary.
The subsequent annual operating fee
payments are calculated by multiplying
the operating fee rate by the imputed
wholesale market value of the projected
annual electric power production. For
the purposes of this calculation, the
imputed market value would be the
product of the project’s annual
nameplate capacity, the total number of
hours in the year (8,760), the capacity
factor, and the annual average price of
electricity derived from a regional
wholesale power price index. For
example, the annual operating fee for a
1,028-megawatt (MW) wind facility
operating at a 40% capacity (i.e.,
capacity factor of 0.4) with an annual
average regional wholesale power price
of $40/megawatt hour (MWh) and an
operating fee rate of 0.02 will be
calculated as follows:
i. Operating Fee Rate: The operating
fee rate is the share of imputed
wholesale market value of the projected
annual electric power production due to
the Office of Natural Resources Revenue
as an annual operating fee. For the Lease
Areas, BOEM will set the fee rate at 0.02
(i.e., 2%) for the entire life of
commercial operations. Should the
lessee satisfy the terms of the stipulation
by meaningfully and substantially
assembling or manufacturing major
components in the United States, they
may be eligible for a 1% operating fee
rate for a period of five years.
ii. Nameplate Capacity: Nameplate
capacity is the maximum rated electric
output, expressed in MW, which the
turbines of the wind facility under
commercial operations can produce at
their rated wind speed as designated by
the turbine’s manufacturer. The
nameplate capacity available at the start
of each year of commercial operations
on the lease will be the capacity
provided in the Fabrication and
Installation Report (FIR). For example, if
the lessee installed 100 turbines as
documented in its FIR, and each is rated
by the manufacturer at 12 MW, the
nameplate capacity of the wind facility
is 1,200 MW.
iii. Capacity Factor: The capacity
factor relates to the amount of energy
delivered to the grid during a period of
time compared to the amount of energy
the wind facility would have produced
at full capacity during that same period
of time. This factor is represented as a
decimal between zero and one. There
are several reasons why the amount of
power delivered is less than the
theoretical 100% of capacity. For a wind
facility, the capacity factor is mostly
determined by the availability of wind.
Transmission line loss and down time
for maintenance or other purposes also
affect the capacity factor.
The capacity factor for the year in
which the commercial operation date
occurs, and for the first 6 full years of
commercial operations on the lease, is
set to 0.4 (i.e., 40%). At the end of the
sixth year, the capacity factor may be
adjusted to reflect the performance over
the previous five years based upon the
actual metered electricity generation at
the delivery point to the electrical grid.
Similar adjustments to the capacity
factor may be made once every five
years thereafter.
iv. Wholesale Power Price Index:
Pursuant to 30 CFR 585.506(c)(2)(i), the
wholesale power price, expressed in
dollars per MW-hour, is determined at
the time each annual operating fee
payment is due. For the leases offered
in this sale, BOEM will use the simple
hourly average of the spot price indices
for New York Independent System
Operators New York City (Zone J).
c. Financial Assurance: Within 10-
business days after receiving the lease
copies and pursuant to 30 CFR 585.515–
.516, the provisional winners of the
leases must provide an initial lease-
specific bond or other approved means
of meeting the lessor’s initial financial
assurance requirements, in the amount
of $100,000. The provisional winners
may meet financial assurance
requirements by posting a surety bond
or by setting up an escrow account with
a trust agreement giving BOEM the right
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Annual Operating
Fee=
1,028
MW
X 8,760
hrs
X 0.4 x $4
oh
Power Price X 0.02 = $2,881,689.60
year
MW
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to withdraw the money held in the
account on demand. BOEM encourages
the provisionally winning bidder to
discuss the financial assurance
requirement with BOEM as soon as
possible after the auction has
concluded. BOEM will base the amount
of all SAP, COP, and decommissioning
financial assurance on cost estimates for
meeting all accrued lease obligations at
the respective stages of development.
BOEM will determine the required
amount of supplemental and
decommissioning financial assurance on
a case-by-case basis. The financial terms
described above can be found in
Addendum ‘‘B’’ of the leases, which
BOEM has made available with this
notice on its website at: https://
www.boem.gov/renewable-energy/state-
activities/new-york-bight.
X. Bidder’s Financial Form: Each
bidder must fill out the BFF referenced
in this FSN. BOEM has also made a
copy of the form available with this
notice on its website at: https://
www.boem.gov/renewable-energy/state-
activities/new-york-bight. BOEM
recommends that each bidder designate
an email address in its BFF that the
bidder will then use to create an
account in pay.gov (if it has not already
done so). BOEM will not consider BFFs
submitted by bidders for previous lease
sales to satisfy the requirements of this
auction. If a bidder does not submit a
BFF by January 26, 2022, BOEM, in its
sole discretion, may grant an extension
to that bidder only if BOEM determines
the bidder’s failure to timely submit a
BFF was caused by events beyond the
bidder’s control. BOEM will only accept
an original, executed paper copy of the
BFF. The BFF must be executed by an
authorized representative listed in the
qualifications package on file with
BOEM as authorized to bind the
company.
XI. Bid Deposit: A bid deposit is an
advance cash payment submitted to
BOEM to participate in the auction.
After creating an account in pay.gov (if
necessary), bidders may use the Bid
Deposit Form on the pay.gov website to
leave a deposit. Each bidder must
submit a bid deposit of $5,000,000 no
later than February 9, 2022. Any bidder
who fails to submit the bid deposit by
this deadline may be disqualified from
participating in the auction.
Following the auction, bid deposits
will be applied against bonus bids or
other obligations owed to BOEM. If the
bid deposit exceeds a bidder’s total
financial obligation, BOEM will refund
the balance of the bid deposit to the
bidder. BOEM will refund bid deposits
to non-winners once BOEM has
announced the provisional winner.
If BOEM offers a lease pursuant to a
provisionally winning bid and that
bidder fails to timely return the signed
lease form, establish financial
assurance, or pay the balance of its bid,
BOEM will retain the bidder’s
$5,000,000 bid deposit. In such a
circumstance, BOEM reserves the right
to determine which bid would have
won in the absence of the bid previously
determined to be the winning bid and
to offer a lease pursuant to this next
highest bid.
XII. Minimum Bid: The minimum bid
is the lowest bid that BOEM will accept
as a winning bid, and it is where BOEM
will start the bidding in the auction.
BOEM has established a minimum bid
of $100.00 per acre for this lease sale.
XIII. Auction Procedures: As
authorized under 30 CFR 585.220(a)(2)
and 585.221(a)(1), BOEM will use an
ascending bidding auction with cash as
the bid variable for this lease sale.
BOEM will start the auction using the
minimum bid prices for each Lease Area
and will increase those prices
incrementally until no more than one
active bidder per Lease Area remains in
the auction.
a. The Auction: Using an online
bidding system to host the auction,
BOEM will start the bidding for Lease
Areas OCS–A 0537 through 0539, OCS–
A 0541, OCS–A 0542, and OCS–A 0544,
as described below. Bidders may bid for
at most one of the offered Lease Areas
in each round of the auction, and
ultimately acquire at most one of the
Lease Areas in the auction.
Lease area Acres Minimum bid
OCS–A 0537 71,522 $7,152,200
OCS–A 0538 84,332 8,433,200
OCS–A 0539 125,964 12,596,400
OCS–A 0541 79,351 7,935,100
OCS–A 0542 83,976 8,397,600
OCS–A 0544 43,056 4,305,600
b. Live Bids: The auction will be
conducted in a series of rounds. At the
start of each round, BOEM will state an
asking price for each Lease Area. If a
bidder is willing to meet the asking
price for one of the Lease Areas, it will
indicate its intent by submitting a bid
equal to the asking price. A bid at the
full asking price is referred to as a ‘‘live
bid.’’ To participate in the next round of
the auction, a bidder must have
submitted a live bid for one of the Lease
Areas in each previous round, or BOEM
must have carried forward a bidder’s bid
from a previous round. As long as there
are two or more live bids (including
bids carried forward) for at least one of
the Lease Areas, the auction moves to
the next round. If a bid is uncontested,
it is automatically carried forward to the
next round. BOEM will raise the asking
price for each of the Lease Areas that
has received two or more live bids in
the previous round. Asking price
increments will be determined based on
several factors, including (but not
necessarily limited to) the expected time
needed to conduct the auction and the
number of rounds that have already
occurred. BOEM reserves the right to
increase or decrease bidding increments
as appropriate.
A bidder may switch its live bid from
one Lease Area to another between
rounds only if its bid from the previous
round was contested. For example, a
bidder cannot switch from OCS–A 0537
to OCS–A 0538 unless there was at least
one other live bid for OCS–A 0537 in
the prior round. If the bid was
uncontested in the previous round, the
bidder cannot switch Lease Areas, and
its bid in the previous round is carried
forward to the next round. If another
bidder places a live bid on OCS–A 0537
later in the auction, BOEM will stop
automatically carrying forward the
previously uncontested bid on that
Lease Area. The bidder that placed the
previously carried forward bid is then
free to bid on any of the Lease Areas in
the next round at the new asking prices.
If a bidder decides to stop bidding
when its bid is contested, there remain
circumstances in which BOEM may
select the bid as the winning bid (e.g.,
if the bid is ultimately selected in the
winner determination that is described
in detail below, or if the winning bid is
disqualified at the award stage of the
auction and BOEM selects another bid).
In these circumstances, the bidder may
be bound by its bid and thus obligated
to pay the full bid amount. Bidders may
be bound by any of their bids until the
auction results are finalized.
Between rounds, BOEM will disclose
to all bidders that submitted bids: (1)
The number of live bids or bids carried
forward for each of the Lease Areas in
the previous round of the auction (i.e.,
the level of demand at the asking price);
and (2) the asking price for each of the
Lease Areas in the upcoming round of
the auction.
c. Exit Bids: In any round after the
first round, a bidder may submit an
‘‘exit bid’’ (also known as an ‘‘intra-
round bid’’) only for the same Lease
Area as the bidder’s contested live bid
in the previous round. An exit bid is a
bid that is greater than the previous
round’s asking price, but less than the
current round’s asking price for that
Lease Area. An exit bid is not a live bid,
and it represents the final bid that a
bidder may submit in the auction. A
bidder may not submit both an exit bid
on one of the Lease Areas and a live bid
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on a different Lease Area. During the
auction, the exit bid can be seen only by
BOEM and not by other bidders. BOEM
will not raise the asking price in a Lease
Area with only exit bids in a given
round because BOEM only raises asking
prices when a Lease Area receives
multiple live bids. As soon as each of
the Lease Areas has one or zero live bids
(including bids carried forward, which
could include an exit bid if another
bidder does not bid on this area in a
subsequent round), the auction is over,
regardless of the number of exit bids on
each area.
d. Determination of Provisional
Winners: After the bidding ends, BOEM
will determine the provisionally
winning bids for each Lease Area by a
two-stage procedure. In stage 1, the
highest bid (live bid or exit bid)
received for each Lease Area in the final
round will be designated the
provisionally winning bid, if there is a
single highest bid. In the event of a tie
(i.e., if two or more bidders submitted
identical highest exit bids for the same
Lease Area), the selection of one of the
highest exit bids will be deferred until
stage 2.
In stage 2, BOEM will consider bids
from all bidding rounds for Lease Areas
that were not assigned in stage 1 by
bidders who were not assigned one of
the Lease Areas in stage 1. BOEM will
select the combination of such bids that
maximizes the sum of the bid amounts
of the selected bids, subject to the
following constraints: (1) Each Lease
Area that received multiple highest exit
bids in the final round (but no live bid)
is assigned to one of the bidders that
submitted the highest exit bid; (2) at
most one bid from each bidder can be
selected; and (3) at most one bid for
each Lease Area can be selected. If there
is a unique combination of bids that
solves this maximization problem, then
these bids are deemed to be the
remaining provisionally winning bids. If
two or more combinations of bids tie by
producing the same maximized sum of
bid amounts, the auction system will
select one of the combinations by
generating pseudorandom numbers. The
provisional winners will pay the
amounts of their provisionally winning
bids. Provisional winners may be
disqualified if they are subsequently
found to have violated auction rules or
BOEM regulations, or otherwise engaged
in conduct detrimental to the integrity
of the competitive auction. If a bidder
submits a bid that BOEM determines to
be a provisionally winning bid, the
bidder will be expected to sign the
applicable lease documents, establish
financial assurance, and submit the cash
balance of its bid (i.e., winning bid
amount minus the bid deposit) within
10-business days of receiving the lease
copies, pursuant to 30 CFR 585.224.
BOEM reserves the right not to issue the
lease to the provisionally winning
bidder if that bidder fails to timely sign
and pay for the lease or otherwise fails
to comply with applicable regulations or
the terms of the FSN. In that case, the
bidder would forfeit its bid deposit.
BOEM may consider failure of a bidder
to timely pay the full amount due to be
an indication that the bidder may no
longer be financially qualified to
participate in other lease sales under 30
CFR 585.106 and 585.107.
BOEM will publish the provisionally
winning bid amounts and provisional
winners. The bid results, including exit
bids, will be published on BOEM’s
website after review of the results and
announcement of the provisional
winners.
e. Authorized Individuals and Bidder
Authentication: A company that is
eligible to participate in the auction will
identify on its BFF up to three
individuals who are authorized to bid
on behalf of the company, including
their names, business telephone
numbers, and email addresses. After
BOEM has processed the bid deposits,
the auction contractor will send several
emails to the authorized individuals.
The emails will contain user login
information and instructions for
accessing the bidder manual for the
auction system and the auction system
technical supplement (ASTS).
The auction system will require
software tokens for two-factor
authentication. To set up the tokens,
authorized individuals must download
an app onto their smartphone or tablet
via a recent operating system. One of the
emails sent to authorized individuals
will contain instructions for installing
the app and the credentials needed to
activate the software token. A short
telephone conversation with the auction
contractor may also be needed to use the
credentials. The login information,
along with the tokens, will be tested
during the mock auction. If an eligible
bidder fails to submit a bid deposit or
does not participate in the auction,
BOEM will de-activate that bidder’s
tokens and login information.
f. Timing of Auction: The auction will
begin at 9:00 a.m. EST on February 23,
2022. Bidders may log in as early as 8:30
a.m. EST on that day. BOEM
recommends that bidders log in earlier
than 9:00 a.m. EST on that day to ensure
that any login issues are resolved prior
to the start of the auction. Once bidders
have logged in, they should review the
auction schedule, which lists the
anticipated start times, end times, and
recess times of each round in the
auction. Each round is structured as
follows:
•Round bidding begins;
•Bidders enter their bids;
•Round bidding ends and the recess
begins;
•During the recess, previous round
results and next round asking prices are
posted;
•Bidders review the previous round
results and prepare their next round
bids; and
•Next round bidding begins.
The first round will last about 30
minutes, though subsequent rounds will
be shorter. Recesses are anticipated to
last approximately 10 minutes. This
description of the auction schedule is
tentative. Bidders should consult the
auction schedule on the auction system
during the auction for updated times.
Bidding will continue until about 6:00
p.m. EST each day. BOEM anticipates
that the auction will last 1- to 2-business
days, but may continue for additional
business days as necessary until the
auction has concluded.
g. Messaging Service: BOEM and the
auction contractors will use the auction
platform messaging service to keep
bidders informed on issues of interest
during the auction. For example, BOEM
may change the schedule at any time,
including during the auction. If BOEM
changes the schedule during an auction,
it will use the messaging feature to
notify bidders that a revision has been
made and will direct bidders to the
relevant page. BOEM will also use the
messaging system for other updates
during the auction.
Bidders may place bids at any time
during the round. At the top of the
bidding page, a countdown clock shows
how much time remains in the round.
Bidders have until the end of the round
to place bids. Bidders should place bids
according to the procedures described
in this notice and the ASTS.
Information about the round results will
only be made available after the round
has closed, so there is no strategic
advantage to placing bids early or late
in the round.
The ASTS will elaborate on the
auction procedures described in this
FSN. In the event of an inconsistency
between the ASTS and the FSN, the
FSN is controlling.
h. Alternate Bidding Procedures:
Redundancy is the most effective way to
mitigate technical and human issues
during an auction. Bidders should
strongly consider authorizing more than
one individual to bid in the auction—
and confirming during the mock auction
that each individual is able to access the
auction system. A 4G card or other form
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of wireless access is helpful in case a
company’s main internet connection
should fail. As a last resort, an
authorized individual facing technical
issues may request to submit its bid by
telephone. In order to be authorized to
place a telephone bid, an authorized
individual must call the help desk
number listed in the auction manual
before the end of the round. BOEM will
authenticate the caller’s identity,
including requiring the caller to provide
a code from the software token. The
caller must also explain the reasons why
a telephone bid must be submitted.
BOEM may, in its sole discretion,
permit or refuse to accept a request for
the placement of a bid using this
alternate bidding procedure.
i. Prohibition on Communications
Between Bidders During Auction:
During the auction, bidders are
prohibited from communicating with
each other regarding their participation
in the auction. Also, during the auction,
bidders are prohibited from
communicating to the public regarding
any aspect of their participation or lack
thereof in the auction, including, but
not limited to, through social media,
updated websites, or press releases.
XIV. Post-Auction Procedures:
a. Rejection or Non-Acceptance of
Bids: BOEM reserves the right and
authority to reject all bids that do not
satisfy the requirements and rules of the
auction, the FSN, or applicable
regulations and statutes.
i. Anti-Competitive Review: Bidding
behavior in this sale is subject to
Federal antitrust laws. Accordingly,
following the auction, but before the
acceptance of bids and the issuance of
leases, BOEM will ‘‘allow the Attorney
General, in consultation with the
Federal Trade Commission, 30 days to
review the results of the lease sale.’’ 43
U.S.C. 1337(c). If a provisionally
winning bidder is found to have
engaged in anti-competitive behavior in
connection with its participation in the
competitive bidding process, BOEM
may reject its provisionally winning bid.
Compliance with BOEM’s auction
procedures and regulations is not an
absolute defense to violations of
antitrust laws.
Anti-competitive behavior
determinations are fact-specific. Such
behavior may manifest itself in several
different ways, including, but not
limited to:
1. An express or tacit agreement
among bidders not to bid in an auction
or to bid a particular price;
2. An agreement among bidders not to
bid or not to bid on one of the Lease
Areas;
3. An agreement among bidders not to
bid against each other; or
4. Other agreements among bidders
that have the potential to affect the final
auction price.
Pursuant to 43 U.S.C. 1337(c), BOEM
will decline to award a lease if the
Attorney General, in consultation with
the Federal Trade Commission,
determines that awarding the lease
would be inconsistent with the antitrust
laws.
For more information on whether
specific communications or agreements
could constitute a violation of Federal
antitrust law, please see https://
www.justice.gov/atr/business-resources
or consult legal counsel.
b. Process for Issuing the Lease: Once
all post-auction reviews have been
completed to BOEM’s satisfaction,
BOEM will issue three unsigned copies
of the lease to each provisionally
winning bidder. Within 10-business
days after receiving the lease copies, the
provisionally winning bidders must:
1. Sign and return the lease copies on
the bidder’s behalf;
2. File financial assurance, as required
under 30 CFR 585.515–.537; and
3. Pay by electronic funds transfer
(EFT) the balance (if any) of the bonus
bid (winning bid less the bid deposit).
BOEM requires bidders to use EFT
procedures (not pay.gov, the website
bidders used to submit bid deposits) for
payment of the balance of the bonus bid,
following the detailed instructions
contained in the ‘‘Instructions for
Making Electronic Payments’’ available
on BOEM’s website at: https://
www.boem.gov/renewable-energy/state-
activities/new-york-bight.
BOEM will not execute a lease until
the three requirements above have been
satisfied, BOEM has accepted the
provisionally winning bidder’s financial
assurance pursuant to 30 CFR 585.515,
and BOEM has processed the
provisionally winning bidder’s
payment.
BOEM may extend the 10-business
day deadline for signing a lease, filing
the required financial assurance, and
paying the balance of the bonus bid if
BOEM determines the delay was caused
by events beyond the provisionally
winning bidder’s control.
If a provisionally winning bidder does
not meet these requirements or
otherwise fails to comply with
applicable regulations or the terms of
the FSN, BOEM reserves the right not to
issue the lease to that bidder. In such a
case, the provisionally winning bidder
will forfeit its bid deposit. Also, in such
a case, BOEM reserves the right to
identify the next highest bid for that
lease area submitted during the lease
sale by a bidder who has not won one
of the other Lease Areas and to offer the
lease to that bidder pursuant to its bid.
Within 45-calendar days of the date
that a provisionally winning bidder
receives copies of the lease, it must pay
the first year’s rent using the pay.gov
and Renewable Energy Initial Rental
Payment form available at: https://
www.pay.gov/public/form/start//
27797604/.
Subsequent annual rent payments
must be made following the detailed
instructions contained in the
‘‘Instructions for Making Electronic
Payments,’’ available on BOEM’s
website at: https://www.boem.gov/
renewable-energy/state-activities/new-
york-bight.
c. Non-Procurement Debarment and
Suspension Regulations: Pursuant to
regulations at 43 CFR part 42, subpart C,
an OCS renewable energy lessee must
comply with the Department of the
Interior’s non-procurement debarment
and suspension regulations at 2 CFR
parts 180 and 1400. The lessee must
also communicate this requirement to
persons with whom the lessee does
business relating to this lease by
including this term as a condition in
their contracts and other transactions.
d. Force Majeure: The Program
Manager of BOEM’s Office of Renewable
Energy Programs has the discretion to
change any auction details specified in
the FSN, including the date and time, in
case of a force majeure event that the
Program Manager deems may interfere
with a fair and proper lease sale process.
Such events may include, but are not
limited to: Natural disasters (e.g.,
earthquakes, hurricanes, floods,
blizzards), wars, riots, acts of terrorism,
fire, strikes, civil disorder, or other
events of a similar nature. In case of
such events, BOEM will notify all
qualified bidders via email, phone, or
through the BOEM website at: http://
www.boem.gov/Renewable-Energy-
Program/index.aspx.
Bidders should call 703–787–1121 if
they have concerns.
e. Withdrawal of Blocks: BOEM
reserves the right to withdraw all or
portions of the Lease Areas prior to
executing the leases with the winning
bidders.
f. Appeals: The appeals procedures
are provided in BOEM’s regulations at
30 CFR 585.225 and 585.118(c).
Pursuant to 30 CFR 585.225:
(a) If BOEM rejects your bid, BOEM
will provide a written statement of the
reasons and refund any money
deposited with your bid, without
interest.
(b) You will then be able to ask the
BOEM Director for reconsideration, in
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writing, within 15-business days of bid
rejection, under 30 CFR 585.118(c)(1).
We will send you a written response
either affirming or reversing the
rejection.
The procedures for appealing final
decisions with respect to lease sales are
described in 30 CFR 585.118(c).
XV. Protection of Privileged or
Confidential Information: BOEM will
protect privileged and confidential
information that you submit, as required
by the Freedom of Information Act
(FOIA). Exemption 4 of FOIA applies to
‘‘trade secrets and commercial or
financial information that you submit
that is privileged or confidential.’’ 5
U.S.C. 552(b)(4). If you wish to protect
the confidentiality of such information,
clearly mark it ‘‘Contains Privileged or
Confidential Information’’ and consider
submitting such information as a
separate attachment. BOEM will not
disclose such information, except as
required by FOIA. Information that is
not labeled as privileged or confidential
may be regarded by BOEM as suitable
for public release. Further, BOEM will
not treat as confidential aggregate
summaries of otherwise confidential
information.
Authority: 43 U.S.C. 1337(p); 30 CFR
585.211 and 585.216.
Amanda Lefton,
Director, Bureau of Ocean Energy
Management.
[FR Doc. 2022–00504 Filed 1–13–22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–MR–P
JUDICIAL CONFERENCE OF THE
UNITED STATES
Advisory Committee on Bankruptcy
Rules; Meeting of the Judicial
Conference
AGENCY
: Judicial Conference of the
United States.
ACTION
: Advisory committee on
Bankruptcy Rules; notice of cancellation
of open hearing.
SUMMARY
: The following virtual public
hearing on proposed amendments to the
Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure
has been canceled: Bankruptcy Rules
Hearing on January 28, 2022. The
announcement for this hearing was
previously published in the Federal
Register on August 11, 2021.
DATES
: January 28, 2022.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
:
Bridget Healy, Esq., Acting Chief
Counsel, Rules Committee Staff,
Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts,
Thurgood Marshall Federal Judiciary
Building, One Columbus Circle NE,
Suite 7–300, Washington, DC 20544,
Phone (202) 502–1820,
RulesCommittee_Secretary@
ao.uscourts.gov.
(Authority: 28 U.S.C. 2073.)
Dated: January 11, 2022.
Shelly L. Cox,
Management Analyst, Rules Committee Staff.
[FR Doc. 2022–00655 Filed 1–13–22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 2210–55–P
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Drug Enforcement Administration
[Docket No. DEA–943]
Importer of Controlled Substances
Application: Organic Standards
Solutions International, LLC
AGENCY
: Drug Enforcement
Administration, Justice.
ACTION
: Notice of application.
SUMMARY
: Organic Standards Solutions
International, LLC has applied to be
registered as an importer of basic
class(es) of controlled substance(s).
Refer to
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
listed below for further drug
information.
DATES
: Registered bulk manufacturers of
the affected basic class(es), and
applicants therefore, may file written
comments on or objections to the
issuance of the proposed registration on
or before February 14, 2022. Such
persons may also file a written request
for a hearing on the application on or
before February 14, 2022.
ADDRESSES
: Written comments should
be sent to: Drug Enforcement
Administration, Attention: DEA Federal
Register Representative/DPW, 8701
Morrissette Drive, Springfield, Virginia
22152. All requests for a hearing must
be sent to: Drug Enforcement
Administration, Attn: Administrator,
8701 Morrissette Drive, Springfield,
Virginia 22152. All request for a hearing
should also be sent to: (1) Drug
Enforcement Administration, Attn:
Hearing Clerk/OALJ, 8701 Morrissette
Drive, Springfield, Virginia 22152; and
(2) Drug Enforcement Administration,
Attn: DEA Federal Register
Representative/DPW, 8701 Morrissette
Drive, Springfield, Virginia 22152.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
: In
accordance with 21 CFR 1301.34(a), this
is notice that on November 15, 2021,
Organic Standards Solutions
International, LLC., 7290 Investment
Drive, Unit B, North Charleston, South
Carolina 29418–8305, applied to be
registered as an importer of the
following basic class(es) of controlled
substance(s):
Controlled substance Drug
code Schedule
Marihuana Extract ..................... 7350 I
Marihuana ................................. 7360 I
Tetrahydrocannabinols ............. 7370 I
The company plans to import the
listed controlled substances to produce
analytical reference standards for
distribution to its customers. Drug codes
7350 (Marihuana Extract) and 7360
(Marihuana) will be used for the
manufacture of cannabidiol only. In
reference to drug code 7370
(Tetrahydrocannabinols), the company
plans to import the synthetic version of
this controlled substance to produce
analytical reference standards for
distribution to their customers. No other
activity for these drug codes is
authorized for this registration.
Approval of permit applications will
occur only when the registrant’s
business activity is consistent with what
is authorized under 21 U.S.C. 952(a)(2).
Authorization will not extend to the
import of Food Drug Administration-
approved or non-approved finished
dosage forms for commercial sale.
Brian S. Besser,
Acting Assistant Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2022–00652 Filed 1–13–22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE P
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Notice of Lodging of Proposed Joint
Stipulation and Order Modifying the
Consent Decree With Central Sprinkler
Corporation Under the Comprehensive
Environmental Response,
Compensation, and Liability Act
(CERCLA)
On January 10, 2022, the Department
of Justice lodged a proposed Joint
Stipulation and Order Modifying the
Consent Decree with Central Sprinkler
Corporation (‘‘CD Modification’’), with
the United States District Court for the
Eastern District of Pennsylvania in the
lawsuit entitled United States v. Parker
Hannifin Corporation and Central
Sprinkler Corporation, Civil Action No.
2:05–cv–1351.
The CD Modification modifies a 2005
Consent Decree entered into between
the United States and Central Sprinkler
Corporation (‘‘Central Sprinkler’’),
relating to Operable Unit 3 (OU3) at the
North Penn Area 6 Superfund Site in
Montgomery County, Pennsylvania (the
‘‘Site’’). The 2005 Consent Decree
addresses one of the source locations in
OU3: Property located at 451 North
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