Hawks Nest Hydro, LLC; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment

On March 5, 2026, and supplemented on March 25, 2026, Hawks Nest Hydro, LLC, filed an application for a non-capacity amendment of license for the Hawks Nest Project No. 2512. The project is located on the New River in Fayette County, West Virginia. The project does not occupy any federal lands. The licensee proposes to convert energy generation and transmission from a frequency of 25 hertz (Hz) to 60 Hz, to allow for the sale of power directly to the regional electric grid. Under the proposal, the licensee would: (1) replace the Unit 1 and Unit 2 turbines and generators, (2) construct a new switchyard near the existing powerhouse, (3) upgrade one of the existing primary transmission lines and abandon the other in place, (4) construct a new access road near the existing powerhouse, (5) install a new prefabricated metal building near the existing powerhouse and substation, (6) upgrade ancillary equipment. The replacement of Units 1 and 2 would increase the project's authorized installed capacity from 102 megawatts (MW) to 108.5 MW and increase the maximum hydraulic capacity from 10,160 cubic feet per second (cfs) to 10,380 cfs. During powerhouse outages associated with the licensee's proposal, all flows would be spilled into the bypassed reach and the licensee's ability to provide recreational flow releases would be dependent on project inflows. The licensee would continue to operate the project in run-of-river mode during and following construction. Following construction, the licensee would increase the minimum flows in the bypassed reach and increase the number of recreational flow releases while shortening the duration of each recreational flow release. On March 17, 2026, Commission staff issued public notice of the application and established a deadline for filing comments, motions to intervene, and protests by April 16, 2026. American Whitewater filed a motion to intervene and comments on April 2, 2026, and two individuals filed comments on April 16, 2026. This notice identifies Commission staff's intention to prepare an environmental assessment (EA) under the National Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) for the project.[] Commission staff plans to issue an EA by October 30, 2026. Revisions to the schedule may be made as appropriate. The EA will be issued for a 30-day comment period. All comments filed on the EA will be reviewed by staff and considered in the Commission's final decision on the proceeding. For public inquiries and assistance with making filings such as interventions, comments, or requests for rehearing, contact the Office of Public Participation at (202) 502-6595 or OPP@ferc.gov. Any questions regarding this notice may be directed to Chris Chaney at (202) 502-6778 or christopher.chaney@ferc.gov. (Authority: 18 CFR 2.1) Dated: June 15, 2026. Debbie-Anne A. Reese, Secretary.