§837b Contract terms and conditions for use of electric energy outside Pacific Northwest

Summary

Requires contracts that sell or swap surplus electric power for use outside the Pacific Northwest to let the Secretary stop deliveries after giving the buyer up to 60 days’ notice if continuing those deliveries would likely make it hard to meet the energy needs of any Pacific Northwest customer. The buyer must promise not to use that energy in ways that would cause undue hardship if deliveries stopped within 60 days, and must accept responsibility if hardship happens. Power a non‑Federal utility sends from its Pacific Northwest plants to serve its own nearby area just outside the region is not treated as power sent outside the Pacific Northwest, unless that outside area was added by merger after August 31, 1964. Power from Federal hydro plants that can be saved and has no current demand in the region may be sent outside only temporarily. Contracts must say the buyer will return all or part of that power later if the Secretary finds the earlier deliveries prevent meeting regional needs, but the Secretary cannot require returns during the buyer’s daily peak hours. Contracts for surplus peaking capacity must allow the Secretary to end them with up to 60 months’ notice and must require the buyer to provide or return needed energy (again not during daily peak hours). When figuring a non‑Federal utility’s regional needs, the Secretary must not count hydro energy the utility sent outside the region if it could reasonably have been kept for local use; any replacement sold can only be what would otherwise be surplus.