Licenses; Exemptions, Applications, Amendments, etc.: Black Canyon Hydro, LLC; Seminoe Pumped Storage Project; Revised Schedule

Black Canyon Hydro, LLC; Notice of Revised Schedule for the Seminoe Pumped Storage Project

This notice revises the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's (Commission) schedule for processing Black Canyon Hydro, LLC's (BCH) license application for the Seminoe Pumped Storage Project. The notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) issued on March 28, 2025, identified April 13, 2026, as the planned date for issuing the final EIS and July 16, 2026, as the planned date for issuing the final order for the project. On September 26, 2025, Commission staff issued a draft EIS and accompanying EIS notice of availability which set a deadline of January 2, 2026, for filing comments on the draft EIS. On December 15, 2025, BCH filed a proposal to relocate a proposed batch plant, spoil pile, and construction area for the inlet-outlet structure to land owned and managed by the Bureau of Reclamation. The filing also included supplemental study reports, an alternative spoil site analysis technical memorandum, a visual resource management conformance supplemental design technical memorandum, a Preliminary Traffic Management Plan, a Wildlife Seasonal Restrictions Management Plan, and a Bighorn Sheep Management Plan. Additionally, on December 30, 2025, BCH filed an updated Preliminary Weed and Vegetation Management Plan, a Preliminary Draft Aquatic Invasive Species Plan, and updated Habitat Management Plan. In response to BCH's revised proposal and updated plans, multiple stakeholders filed requests for an extension of the draft EIS comment period. Subsequently, the Commission issued a notice on January 23, 2026, that extended the deadline for filing comments on the draft EIS to February 13, 2026, to provide stakeholders with the necessary time to review BCH's revised proposal and updated plans. To account for the additional time needed for Commission staff to evaluate BCH's revised proposal and to review and respond to comments submitted during the extended comment period, the application will be processed according to the following revised schedule.

Issuance of final EIS-June 12, 2026

The project is covered under Title 41 of the Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act (FAST-41). Under FAST-41, agencies are to publish completion dates for all federal environmental reviews and authorizations. This notice identifies the Commission's anticipated schedule for issuance of the final order for the project, which is based on the revised issuance date for the final EIS. We currently anticipate issuing the final order for the project no later than:

Issuance of Final Order-September 17, 2026

If a schedule change becomes necessary, additional notice will be provided so that interested parties and government agencies are kept informed of the project's progress.

(Authority: 18 CFR 2.1)