Where Are We After 10 Years of Bulk Electric System Reliability Standards?
As concerns about grid security increase globally, it’s a good time to review the history, scope, and effect of North American electric system reliability standards. As the threat landscape changes, standards alone are not enough.
Mandatory. That’s the key word in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct) where grid security is concerned. Within two years of that legislative action, the electric power industry was welcomed into the world of operation and planning regulation far beyond anything that had come before. As of June 18, 2017, we will have 10 years of experience with mandatory reliability standards. Are we better off as a result? Are the costs of compliance commensurate with the benefits? Will changes in approach to compliance currently under way enable a more efficient regulatory environment going forward? This article examines how we got to the current system and where we may go from here.
The Triggering Event
The April 14, 2003, blackout of much of the northeastern United States and parts of Canada was the impetus for EPAct and the accompanying changes to Section 215 of the Federal Power Act.…