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All regions across the bulk power system (BPS) are generally prepared to meet resource adequacy criteria to meet normal peak demand this summer, but ongoing concerns about extreme weather events, […]
The post NERC: Summer Grid Outlook Improved But Still Vulnerable to Extreme Weather, Demand Growth Spikes appeared first on POWER Magazine.
The North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) is warning that much of the central U.S.—a region that stretches from the Great Lakes into southern Texas—may face critical power deficiencies during extreme winter weather conditions over the next three months. Natural gas supply disruptions and low hydropower conditions could also imperil power reliability in New England and the West, it said.
In its Nov. 18–issued 2021–2022 Winter Reliability Assessment, the nation’s designated Electric Reliability Organization (ERO) urged generators across the U.S. to take proactive steps to prepare for an eventful winter and keep communications open with grid operators.
NERC also called on grid operators to prepare and implement cold weather operating plans, conduct drills, and poll generators for fuel and availability status. Load-serving entities should review critical loads to prevent disruptions, and regulators should support requested environmental waivers, it said.
The ERO’s dire report echoes its May-issued summer assessment, when it warned of “elevated risks” for energy emergencies in Texas, New England, in the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) territory, and parts of the West.…
The accelerated retirement of coal-fired and nuclear generation by 2022 could adversely affect reliability in four regions, including in the east and over a swathe of the central U.S., the North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) warned as it released findings from a “stress-test” scenario.
But the entity tasked with ensuring reliability and security of the North American bulk power system (BPS) also noted six of 10 assessment areas—which cover PJM, New England, MISO, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), and the Western coast—would have enough generation capacity to maintain peak demand, even if they see high levels of generator retirements over the next five years.
The findings stem from NERC’s Dec. 18–released “Generation Retirement Scenario,” which the entity evaluated because, it said, the retirement of traditional baseload generators and their rapid replacement with natural gas–fired, wind, and solar generation “is changing the characteristics of the BPS and introducing new considerations for reliability planning.”
The so-called “stress-test” scenario essentially assumes that areas where coal and nuclear currently make up a large share of resource levels will see accelerated retirements so that by 2022, they will lose 30% of their coal capacity and 45% of their nuclear capacity.…
Despite the recent retirement of “blackstart” units, grid operators have sufficient resources to quickly restore systems in the event of widespread outages, suggests a new report by staff at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC).
The report—“FERC-NERC-Regional Entity Joint Review of Restoration and Recovery Plans”—released May 2 presents findings from a joint FERC and NERC study that evaluated blackstart resources and planning by nine utilities registered with NERC. NERC—a non-profit international regulatory authority tasked with assuring reliability and security of the grid—defines a blackstart resource as one or more generating units and associated equipment that can be started without support from the bulk power system and is designed to remain energized without connection to the system. A blackstart unit energizes other equipment. The first generating unit in its cranking path is known as a “next-start” generating unit.
According to the report, blackstart generating units included in the participants’ system restoration strategies—and most participants had more than one, it noted—ranged from small (50 MVA) to larger units (100–200 MVA), to banks of generating units exceeding 1,000 MVA in capacity.…
Complying with reliability standards requires considerable resource planning. The tools and suggestions provided here may help engineers conform to new generator relay loadability requirements. But compliance isn’t the only reason to be an early adopter; doing so can also avoid unnecessary downtime and reduce maintenance costs.
If you are the owner or operator of a generation facility connected to the bulk electric system (BES), starting a new year may trigger some anxiety regarding regulatory requirements. In particular, the October 2019 deadline to demonstrate compliance with the North American Electric Reliability Corp.’s Generator Relay Loadability Standard (NERC PRC-025-1) just got a little closer. But not to worry, there are resources that can streamline the work required and make your job a little easier.
PRC-025-1 is just one of the reliability standards created following the 2003 electric power blackout that affected 50 million people in the U.S. and Canada. As the most widespread blackout in North American history, it is estimated to have cost between $ 7 billion and $ 14 billion.…
Ensuring the reliability of the power system is the responsibility of many industry participants. In this POWER exclusive, one regional reliability entity, the Midwest Reliability Organization, explains its role.
In response to the 2003 Blackout—which affected parts of the U.S. Northeast and Midwest, plus portions of the Canadian province of Ontario—the U.S. Congress mandated adoption of reliability standards for the bulk power system (BPS). The North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) is responsible for coordinating the development of those mandatory reliability standards (written by industry experts), which become effective with approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in the U.S. and authorization in Canada under arrangements with each province. NERC has contracted with Midwest Reliability Organization (MRO) and seven other regional entities to be responsible for compliance, monitoring, and enforcement of the reliability standards.
When MRO began enforcing mandatory reliability standards in 2007, every instance of noncompliance, no matter what the risk was to reliable operations of the BPS, required a formal enforcement proceeding with a filing to FERC in the U.S.…