[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 27 (Monday, February 10, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7657-7659]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-01217]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket No. RD13-12-000]
Joint Petition of the North American Electric, Reliability
Corporation, and Texas Reliability Entity, Inc. for Approval of
Proposed Regional Reliability Standard BAL-001-TRE-01--Primary
Frequency Response in the ERCOT Region
In Reply Refer To: North American Electric, Reliability Corporation,
Docket No. RD13-12-000.
Holly A. Hawkins, Assistant General Counsel, North American Electric
Reliability Corporation, 1325 G Street, NW., Suite 600, Washington, DC
20005.
Tammy Cooper, General Counsel, Texas Reliability Entity, Inc., 805 Las
Cimas Parkway, Suite 200, Austin, Texas 78746.
Reference: Joint Petition of the North American Electric
Reliability Corporation and Texas Reliability Entity, Inc. for approval
of proposed regional Reliability Standard BAL-001-TRE-01--Primary
Frequency Response in the ERCOT region.
Dear Mmes. Hawkins and Cooper:
1. On September 18, 2013, the North American Electric Reliability
Corporation (NERC) and the Texas Reliability Entity, Inc. (Texas RE)
filed a joint petition (Petition) seeking approval of proposed regional
Reliability Standard BAL-001-TRE-01 (Primary Frequency Response),
implementation plan, and the associated violation risk factors and
1. violation severity levels in response to the Order No. 693
directive to develop a regional Reliability Standard for assuring
frequency performance in the ERCOT Interconnection.\1\
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\1\ Mandatory Reliability Standards for the Bulk-Power System,
Order No. 693, 72 FR 16416 (Apr. 4, 2007), FERC Stats. & Regs. ]
31,242, at PP 313-15 (2007), order on reh'g, Order No. 693-A, 120
FERC ] 61,053 (2007).
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2. 2. The Petition states that the purpose of proposed regional
Reliability Standard BAL-001-TRE-01 is to maintain ERCOT
Interconnection steady-state frequency within defined limits by
balancing real-power demand and supply in real-time. This reliability
goal is accomplished by requiring prompt and sufficient frequency
response from resources to stabilize frequency during changes in the
system generation-demand balance.\2\ Pursuant to section 215(d) of the
Federal Power Act, we approve regional Reliability Standard BAL-001-
TRE-01 as just, reasonable, not unduly discriminatory or preferential,
and in the public interest.
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\2\ Petition at 10.
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3. On March 16, 2007, the Commission issued Order No. 693,
approving 83 of the 107 Reliability Standards and associated
definitions filed by NERC, including Reliability Standard BAL-001-0.\3\
In Order No. 693, the Commission approved a regional difference for the
ERCOT Interconnection from Reliability Standard BAL-001-0, allowing
ERCOT to be exempt from Requirement R2. In doing so, the Commission
found that ERCOT's approach to frequency response under its own
protocols appeared to be more stringent than Requirement R2. As with
other new regional Reliability Standards, the Commission stated that it
``expects that the ERCOT regional difference will include Requirements,
Measures and Levels of Non-Compliance sections.''\4\
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\3\ Order No. 693, FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 31,242 at PP 313-315.
\4\ Id. P 315.
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4. On September 18, 2013, NERC and the Texas RE filed a joint
petition (Petition) seeking approval of regional Reliability Standard
BAL-001-TRE-01 (Primary Frequency Response), implementation plan, and
the associated violation risk factors and violation severity levels.
The Petition states that regional Reliability Standard BAL-001-TRE-01
complies with the Commission's directive in Order No. 693. The Petition
further states that, while the regional Reliability Standard requires
individual generators to provide frequency response, it does not
restrict the balancing authority from obtaining frequency response from
other sources to meet the Interconnection's required level of
performance.\5\
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\5\ Petition at 11.
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5. NERC states that the regional Reliability Standard was developed
and approved by industry stakeholders using the Texas RE Texas
Reliability Entity Standards Development Process, approved by the Texas
RE Board of Directors on April 23, 2013, and subsequently approved by
the NERC Board of Trustees on August 15, 2013. NERC states that the
proposed regional Reliability Standard is applicable to balancing
authorities, generator owners, and generator operators within the
footprint of the Texas RE in the ERCOT Interconnection.
6. NERC asserts that regional Reliability Standard BAL-001-TRE-01
improves upon ERCOT's existing practices for frequency response, is
necessitated by physical differences in the ERCOT system and represents
an alternative, more stringent means of ensuring frequency response
performance than the continent-wide NERC Reliability Standard.\6\
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\6\ Id. at 3.
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7. Regional Reliability Standard BAL-001-TRE-01 has ten
requirements related to: (1) identifying and posting frequency
measureable events (Requirement R1); (2) calculating the primary
frequency response of each resource in the Interconnection (Requirement
R2); (3) calculating the Interconnection minimum frequency response and
monitoring the actual frequency response of the Interconnection
(Requirements R3-R5); (4) requiring resources to operate in accordance
with specified governor deadband and droop parameters and to promptly
notify the balancing authority of any change in governor status
(Requirements R6-R8); and (5) providing primary frequency response
performance requirements for each generator (Requirements R9-R10). The
requirements in BAL-001-TRE-01 work together to help ensure that
generation and load remain balanced--or are quickly restored to
balance--in the
[[Page 7658]]
ERCOT Interconnection so that system frequency is restored to stability
and near normal frequency even after a significant event occurs on the
system.
8. NERC also seeks approval of the implementation plan for BAL-001-
TRE-01, as follows. On the first day of the first calendar quarter that
is 12 months following the effective date of BAL-001-TRE-01, the
balancing authority, i.e., ERCOT, and generator operators must be fully
compliant with Requirements R1and R8, respectively. Further, the
implementation plan mandates that at least 50 percent of each generator
owner's generating units/generating facilities must be compliant with
Requirements R6 and R7 the first calendar quarter that is 12 months
following the effective date of BAL-001- TRE-01. The balancing
authority must become fully compliant with Requirements R2, R3, R4 and
R5 the first calendar quarter that is 18 months following the effective
date of BAL-001-TRE-01, and 100 percent of the generator owner's
generating units/generating facilities must be compliant with
Requirement R7 within this same time period. Compliance with
Requirements R9 and R10 on at least 50 percent of the generator owner's
generating units/generating facilities is required the first calendar
quarter that is 24 months following the effective date of BAL-001-TRE-
01. Similarly, 100 percent of the generator owner's units/generating
facilities are required to be compliant with Requirements R9 and R10
the first calendar quarter that is 30 months following the effective
date of BAL-001-TRE-01.
9. NERC's filing was noticed on September 23, 2013, with comments,
interventions and protests due on or before October 15, 2013. No
comments or protests were filed.
10. We approve regional Reliability Standard BAL-001-TRE-01 and the
associated implementation plan, violation severity levels and violation
risk factors. We find that the regional Reliability Standard is just,
reasonable, not unduly discriminatory or preferential, and in the
public interest. Reliability Standard BAL-001-TRE-01 is a comprehensive
frequency response standard that adequately addresses all applicable
Commission directives and we believe it will protect and improve
reliability in the ERCOT Interconnection by enabling entities to
maintain sufficient frequency response that can be made quickly
available to arrest possible frequency excursions. We concurrently have
approved Reliability Standard BAL-003-1, which addresses frequency
response on a continent-wide basis. \7\ As noted in the approval of
BAL-003-1, the method of obtaining frequency response in BAL-001-TRE-01
may provide balancing authorities the means to procure sufficient
resources to satisfy their frequency response obligations if such
challenges should occur. \8\ These are new Reliability Standards both
nationally and for the ERCOT Interconnection. As with the national
standard, because no regional standard existed previously, Reliability
Standard BAL-001-TRE-01 represents a step forward in improving
reliability of the Bulk-Power System in the ERCOT Interconnection.
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\7\ See Frequency Response and Frequency Response Bias Setting
Reliability Standard, Order No. 794, 146 FERC ] 61,024.
\8\ Id.
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11. The Commission also finds that NERC's proposed violation risk
factors and violation severity levels for regional Reliability Standard
BAL-001-TRE-01 are consistent with the Commission's established
guidelines for review of proposed violation risk factors and violation
severity levels, and find NERC's proposed implementation plan
reasonable. Accordingly, we approve NERC's proposed violation risk
factors, violation severity levels and implementation plan for
Reliability Standard BAL-001-TRE-01.
Information Collection
12. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations require
approval of certain information collection requirements imposed by
agency actions.\9\ Upon approval of a collection of information, OMB
will assign an OMB control number and expiration date. Respondents
subject to the filing requirement of this order will not be penalized
for failing to respond to these collections of information unless the
collections of information display a valid OMB control number. The
Commission will submit these reporting and record keeping requirements
to OMB for its review and approval under section 3507(d) of the
Paperwork Reduction Act.
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\9\ 5 CFR 1320.10.
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13. This order is effective immediately; however, the revised
information collection requirements will not be effective or
enforceable until OMB approves the information collection changes
described in this order. Comments are solicited within 60 days of the
date this order is published in the Federal Register on the
Commission's need for this information, whether the information will
have practical utility, the accuracy of provided burden estimates, ways
to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be
collected, and any suggested methods for minimizing the respondent's
burden, including the use of automated information techniques. Submit
comments following the Commission's submission guidelines at http://www.ferc.gov/help/submission-guide.asp and reference Docket No. RD13-
12.
14. Regional Reliability Standard BAL-001-TRE-01 is more
comprehensive than the existing continent-wide Reliability Standards
addressing frequency response, BAL-001-0.1a and BAL-003-0.1b in that
the regional standard includes additional requirements and applies to
generator owners and generator operators as well as balancing
authorities. The expanded applicability of the regional Reliability
Standard, thus, increases the reporting burden for entities that
operate within the ERCOT Interconnection.
15. Burden Estimate: Our estimate below regarding the number of
respondents is based on the NERC compliance registry as of October
2013. According to the registry, the ERCOT region includes 40 generator
owners, 14 generator operators, 75 generator owners that are also
generator operators, and one balancing authority. Thus, we estimate
that a total of 130 entities are potentially subject to the reporting
requirements of BAL-001-TRE-01.
16. The information collection requirements the setting or
configuration of the Control System software, identification and
recording of events, data retention and submitting a report as outlined
in the table below.
[[Page 7659]]
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Number of Number of Average
FERC-725T respondents responses per burden hours Total annual Total annual
\10\ respondent per response burden hours cost \11\
(1) (2) (3) (1) x (2) x
(3)
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Maintain and submit Event Log .............. 1 $960
Data...........................
BA 1 16 16 ($60/hr.)
Modification to Governor 114 $75,440
Controller Setting/
Configuration..................
GO 1 8 920 One-time
($82/hr.)
Evidence Retention.............. 130 $8,320
BA/GO/GOP 1 2 260 ($32/hr.)
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TOTAL................... 1,196 $84,720
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Title: Mandatory Reliability Standards for the Bulk-Power System
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\10\ BA = Balancing Authority, GO = Generator Owner, GOP =
Generator Operator.
\11\ The estimates for cost per hour (rounded to the nearest
dollar) are derived as follows:
$60/hour, the average salary plus benefits per engineer
(from Bureau of Labor Statistics at http://bls.gov/oes/current/naics3_221000.htm).
$82/hour, the salary plus benefits per manager (from
Bureau of Labor Statistics at http://bls.gov/oes/current/naics3_221000.htm).
$32/hour, the salary plus benefits per information and
record clerks (from Bureau of Labor Statistics at http://bls.gov/oes/current/naics3_221000.htm).
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Action: Proposed revisions to FERC-725T.
OMB Control No: To Be Determined
Respondents: Businesses or other for-profit institutions; not-for-
profit institutions.
Frequency of Responses: Modification to Governor Controller; once
in the life of the equipment. Maintaining and Submitting Log Data;
annually
Necessity of the Information: Reliability Standard BAL-001-TRE-01
satisfies certain prior directives of the Commission that include
requirements concerning frequency response.
Interested persons may obtain information on the reporting
requirements by contacting: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888
First Street NE., Washington, DC 20426 [Attention: Ellen Brown, Office
of the Executive Director, email: [email protected], Phone: (202)
502-8663, fax: (202) 273-0873].
By the direction of the Commission.
Dated: January 16, 2014.
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2014-01217 Filed 2-7-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P