FERC Proposes New Reliability Standard on Geomagnetic Disturbances
Jun 10 - Transmission & Distribution World
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission last month proposed to
approve a new reliability standard addressing the vulnerability of
electric transmission systems to geomagnetic disturbances (GMD) to
support continued reliable operation of the nation’s Bulk-Power System.
GMDs caused by solar events distort, with varying intensities, Earth’s
magnetic field. These events are considered to be “high impact, low
frequency” events, but can have potentially severe, widespread effects
on reliable grid operation, including blackouts and damage to critical
or vulnerable equipment.
In May 2013 , FERC directed the North American Electric Reliability
Corporation (NERC), the Commission-approved Electric Reliability
Organization , to develop and submit new GMD standards through a
two-stage process. FERC addressed the first stage in June 2014 by
approving a standard on implementation of operating plans, procedures
and processes to mitigate effects of GMD.
This Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) addresses the second stage and
would adopt NERC’s proposed standard that sets requirements for
transmission planners and owners to assess the vulnerability of their
systems to a “benchmark GMD event,” which NERC described as a
“one-in-100-year” event. If an entity does not meet certain performance
requirements based on the assessments, it must develop a plan to achieve
the requirements.
Specifically, the standard would require entities to have system models
needed to complete vulnerability assessments, to have criteria for
acceptable steady state voltage performance during a benchmark event,
and to complete a vulnerability assessment once every 60 calendar
months. If the assessment indicates that a system does not meet the
performance requirements, the entity would have to develop a corrective
action plan addressing how the requirements will be met.
Related FERC Adopts Reliability Standard on Geomagnetic Disturbances
Approaches for Minimizing Risks to Power System Infrastructure Due to
Geomagnetic Disturbances
The NOPR also would direct NERC to make modifications. Given the
limited historic geomagnetic data and because scientific understanding
of such disturbances is still evolving, the Commission is concerned
about how a benchmark GMD event is defined in the standard. Proposed
modifications would require that the study and benchmarking of GMD
events is based on a more complete set of data and a reasonable
scientific and engineering approach, FERC said. The Commission also
proposed specific revisions to require that once an entity identifies
the need for a corrective action plan, it acts in a timely manner.
Comments on this NOPR are due 60 days after publication in the
Federal Register .
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