Standards for Business Practices for Interstate Natural Gas Pipelines

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) is amending its regulations that establish standards for interstate natural gas pipeline business practices and electronic communications to incorporate by reference into its regulations the most recent version of the standards, Version 1.9, adopted by the Wholesale Gas Quadrant (WGQ) of the North American Energy Standards Board (NAESB) applicable to natural gas pipelines, with certain enumerated exceptions. This rule upgrades the Commission's current business practice and communication standards to include standards governing Index-Based Capacity Release and Flexible Delivery and Receipt Points and to reflect the Commission's findings in Order Nos. 698, 712, 717, and 682. This rule will increase the efficiency of the pipeline grid and make pipelines' electronic communications more secure.