An Introduction to WECC and the

Mandatory Reliability Standards

Brock John

October 15, 2014

1

Northeast Blackout of 2003

• August 14, 2003 ~04:10PM EDT

• More than 508 generating units at 265 power plants shut down during the outage.

• Just before the event, the NYISO managed power system was carrying 28,700 MW of load.

• At the height of the outage, the load had dropped to 5,716 MW, a loss of 80%.

• SYSTEM RELIABILITY WAS COMPROMISED

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2

Who Became Responsible?

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FERC

North American Electric

Reliability Corp

Western Electricity Coordinating Council

Regulatory Response

• 2006 – FERC issued an order certifying NERC as the

Electricity Reliability Organization for the United States.

• Prior to this, NERC's guidelines for power system

operation and accreditation were referred to as Policies -

compliance was voluntary.

• NERC has since revised its Policies into Standards, and

now has authority to enforce those standards on power

system entities operating in the United States as well as

several provinces in Canada, including BC

• Compliance is now mandatory – BCUC has the right

to impose financial penalties for noncompliance

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North American Electric Reliability Corporation

• NERC is a not-for-profit international regulatory authority whose mission is to ensure the reliability of the bulk electric system in NA.

• NERC develops and enforces Reliability Standards;

‒ annually assesses seasonal and long‐term reliability;

‒ monitors the bulk electric system through system awareness;

‒ and educates, trains, and certifies industry personnel.

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Western Electricity Coordinating Council

• WECC is the Regional

Entity responsible for

coordinating and

promoting Bulk Electric

System reliability in the

Western

Interconnection.

• WECC’s service territory

extends from Canada to

Mexico including the

provinces of Alberta and

British Columbia, the

northern portion of Baja

California, Mexico, and all

or portions of the 14

Western states between.

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BC Utility Commission’s Role

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FERC

North American Electric

Reliability Corp

Western Electricity Coordinating Council

BC Utilities

Commission

BC Utilities Commission

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• 2007 British Columbia Energy Plan stated that BC needs to remain

consistent with evolving North American reliability standards

• BC Utilities Commission Act was amended giving the BCUC

jurisdiction to adopt reliability standards for application in British

Columbia (our standards can be slightly different).

• BCUC adopted

‒ 103 reliability standards (some already in use, but now mandatory),

‒ Rules of Procedure,

‒ Registration Manual and Compliance Monitoring Program for reliability standards

in British Columbia and

‒ Appointed WECC as Administrator to assist the BCUC in carrying out the

registration of parties and compliance monitoring.

• BCUC Reliability Standard website - http://www.bcuc.com/mrs.aspx

Does This Apply To You?

Bulk Electric System Definition

• Transmission Elements operated at 100 kV or higher

Inclusions:

• I1 - Transformers with the primary terminal and at least one secondary terminal

operated at 100 kV or higher

• I2 - Generating resource(s) with gross individual nameplate rating greater than 20

MVA or gross plant/facility aggregate nameplate rating greater than 75 MVA

including the generator terminals through the high-side of the step-up transformer(s)

connected at a voltage of 100 kV or above.

• I3 - Blackstart Resources identified in the Transmission Operator’s restoration plan.

• I4 - Dispersed power producing resources with aggregate capacity greater than

75 MVA (gross aggregate nameplate rating) utilizing a system designed primarily for

aggregating capacity, connected at a common point at a voltage of 100 kV or above.

Note - Elements may be included or excluded on a case-by-case basis through the

Rules of Procedure exception process

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Responsible Entities

Entity Definition of Entity Applicability

Reliability

Coordinator/Interchange

Authority

Responsible for the reliable operation of the Bulk Electric System, has the Wide Area view of the Bulk Electric System,.

Peak Reliability

Balancing Authority Integrates resource plans ahead of time, maintains load-interchange-generation balance within a Balancing Authority Area, and supports Interconnection frequency in real time.

BC Hydro

Generation Operator Operates generating unit(s) and performs the functions of

supplying energy and Interconnected Operations Services.

IPP

Generation Owner Owns and maintains generating units. IPP

Transmission Operator Responsible for the reliability of its “local” transmissionsystem and operates or directs the operations of the transmission facilities.

IPP or BC Hydro

(directs

operations)

Transmission Owner Owns and maintains transmission facilities. IPP

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Applicable Standards In BC

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Category Description Applicability to IPPs

BAL Balancing Issues N/A

CIP Critical Infrastructure Protection Transmission Operators

Generator Operators

COM Communications adequacy Transmission Operators

Generator Operators

EOP Emergency Operations Planning Transmission Operators

Generator Operators

FAC Facility Connection Requirements Transmission Owner

Transmission Operators

Generator Operators

INT Interchange Information N/A

IRO Reliability Coordination Transmission Owner

Transmission Operators

Generator Owners

Generator Operators

Applicable Standards In BC - continued

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Category Description Applicability to IPPs

MOD Available Transmission System Capability Transmission Owner

Transmission Operators

Generator Owners

PER Operating Personnel Responsibilities Transmission Operators

PRC Protection System Coordination Transmission Owner

Transmission Operators

Generator Owners

Generator Operators

TOP Reliability Responsibilities and Authorities Transmission Operators

Generator Operators

TPL System Performance N/A

VAR Voltage and Reactive Control Transmission Operators

Generator Owners

Generator Operators

Compliance Monitoring Program

• Self‐Certification: Attestation by an Entity as to its compliance or

noncompliance with Reliability Standards – annually

• Periodic Information Submittals: Information submitted by an Entity to

demonstrate compliance with Reliability Standards – typically quarterly.

• Self‐Reporting: Information prepared by an Applicable Entity identifying

a possible violation of a Reliability Standard, based on the Entity's own

assessment.

• Spot Checking: A request made to an Entity to provide Information to

support the Applicable Entity’s Self‐Certification, Self‐Reporting, or

Periodic Information Submittal – typically random or triggered

• Compliance Audit: A systematic and objective review and examination

of an Entity’s Information and activities to evaluate compliance with

Reliability Standards.

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Questions?

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