May 23, 2013 | By
Barbara Vergetis Lundin
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has issued a
final rule requiring the development of reliability
standards that address the impact of geomagnetic disturbances
(GMD) to ensure continued reliable operation of the nation's
bulk-power system.
GMDs caused by solar events distort the earth's magnetic
field and could create potentially severe, widespread effects on
reliable grid operation. This includes blackouts and damage to
critical or vulnerable equipment.
The rule orders the North American Electric Reliability
Corporation (NERC), the FERC-approved Electric Reliability
Organization, to develop and submit new GMD standards in two
stages.
In the first stage, NERC must file, within six months of the
rule taking effect, one or more reliability standards requiring
owners and operators of the bulk-power system to develop and
implement operational procedures to mitigate the effects of GMD.
NERC must also conduct a GMD vulnerability assessment and
identify facilities most at risk from a severe disturbance.
In the second stage, NERC has 18 months to file standards
identifying "benchmark GMD events," which define the severity of
GMD events that must be assessed for potential impacts on the
bulk-power system. If the assessments identify potential issues,
the reliability standards require the development and
implementation of plans to protect against instability,
uncontrolled separation or cascading failures of the system.
For more:
- see the
Order
Sign up for our FREE newsletter for more news like this sent to
your inbox!