AEP re-licensing info at Smith Mountain Lake (via Wikipedia)

Licensing

AEP is licensed to operate the Smith Mountain Project by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). The initial license term was for fifty years. In 1998, AEP began the process of relicensing which should be complete in 2009. The new license term may be up to fifty years. Under the requirements of relicensing, AEP is required to perform numerous studies to determine management requirements during the upcoming license term. Once the new license is issued, amending AEP's license will become much more difficult.

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