1 Reliability Coordination (IRO Standards) 2011 System Operator Conferences #3 and #4 September & 20-22, 2011 Nashville/Franklin TN Rocky Williamson Operations Training Manager Southern Company Services - Transmission

2011 System Operator Conference 2 Learning Objectives At the conclusion of this training, the participant should be able to: Identify responsibilities and authorities of the Reliability Coordinator (IRO ) Recognize the purview of the Reliability Coordinator (IRO ) Describe how the Reliability Coordinator assesses the Bulk Electric System (IRO-008-1)

2011 System Operator Conference 3 Outline of Topics What is Reliability Coordination? What does a Reliability Coordinator do? What NERC standards apply?  IRO ‒ Responsibilities ‒ Authority ‒ Delegation  IRO ‒ Monitoring the wide-area view  IRO ‒ Next-day analyses; real-time assessments

2011 System Operator Conference 4 Reliability Coordination Reliability Coordinator (RC) Highest level of authority  Responsible for reliable operation of the Bulk Electric System (BES)  Has Wide Area View of the BES  Has operating tools, processes, procedures, and authority to prevent/mitigate emergency operating situations ‒ Next-day analysis ‒ Real-time operations

2011 System Operator Conference 5 Responsibilities IRO Purpose  RCs must have: ‒ Authority ‒ Plans ‒ Agreements  To be able to direct entities to: ‒ Redispatch generation ‒ Reconfigure transmission ‒ Reduce load

2011 System Operator Conference 6 Responsibilities IRO Purpose (continued)  RCs may delegate tasks, but retains responsibilities for complying with: ‒ NERC Standards ‒ Regional Standards  RC must not favor one market participant over another (Standards of Conduct)

2011 System Operator Conference 7 Authority IRO R1 Who gives the RC authority? ‒ Regional Reliability Organization ‒ Subregion ‒ Interregional Coordinating Group Authority to ‒ Continuously assess transmission reliability ‒ Coordinate emergency operations Among operating entities ‒ Within the region ‒ Across regional boundaries

2011 System Operator Conference 8 Authority IRO R2  RC shall ‒ Comply with regional reliability plan

2011 System Operator Conference 9 Authority IRO R3  RC shall have clear decision-making authority to ‒ Act ‒ Direct actions ‒ Preserve the integrity/reliability of the BES ‒ Take action, without delay, but no longer than 30 minutes

2011 System Operator Conference 10 Delegate Delegate – Give task or authority to somebody else to act on your behalf IRO R4  If an RC chooses to delegate tasks, he/she must ‒ Have formal operating agreements ‒ Verify all delegated tasks are Understood Communicated Addressed  Responsibilities for complying with NERC/Regional standards, applicable to RC, remain with the RC

2011 System Operator Conference 11 Effective Communication Mutual understanding between two or more people Probably the most important defense in prevention of errors and events

2011 System Operator Conference 12 Effective Communication Verbal communication possesses a greater risk of misunderstanding compared to written forms of communication Confirmation of verbal exchanges MUST occur “The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.“ George Bernard Shaw

2011 System Operator Conference 13 Delegate IRO R5  RC shall ‒ List all entities to which the RC has delegated tasks

2011 System Operator Conference 14 Delegate IRO R6  RC shall ‒ Verify that tasks are carried out by NERC-Certified operating personnel

2011 System Operator Conference 15 Delegate IRO R7  RC shall ‒ Have clear, comprehensive coordination agreements with adjacent RCs SOL or IROL violation mitigation is coordinated

2011 System Operator Conference 16 Delegate IRO R8 TTOP BBA GGOP TTSP LLSE PPSE Shall comply with RC unless... Actions would violate  Safety  Equipment  Regulatory requirements  Statutory requirements If so, entities shall inform RC RC may implement alternate actions

2011 System Operator Conference 17 Directives Coordination, communication, cooperation, collaboration  One entity recommends/suggests course of action  Receiving entity evaluates concerns/problems; considers safety, regulatory/equipment requirements; or alternative actions  This is NOT considered “directives” Directive – an authoritative order given with the expectation of immediate compliance Not an instruction as part of a collaborative exchange

2011 System Operator Conference 18 Directives Emergency Time is of the essence Normal collaboration not possible Refusal of entity to consider recommendation from authority without justification

2011 System Operator Conference 19 Clear and Concise Directives Reliable and efficient real-time operations = clear and unambiguous communications From NERC Industry Advisory July 15, 2009; rev. July 24, 2009

2011 System Operator Conference 20 Responsibilities IRO R9  RC shall act in the interests of reliability for the overall Reliability Coordinator Area and the Interconnection before the interests of any other entity

2011 System Operator Conference 21 Monitoring IRO Purpose  RCs must have wide-area view of: ‒ Its RC area ‒ Neighboring RCs

2011 System Operator Conference 22 Monitoring Wide-area view  EMS – Energy Management Systems  Power-World  Frequency  RCIS – Reliability Coordinator Information System  OASIS – Open Access Same-time Information System  IDC – Interchange Distribution Calculator  ETS – Electronic Tagging System

2011 System Operator Conference 23 Monitoring IRO R1  RC monitors: ‒ All BES facilities (may include sub transmission info) ‒ SOL and IROL violations within its RC area and adjacent RC areas  At any time  Regardless of prior planned or unplanned events

2011 System Operator Conference 24 Monitoring IRO R2  RC shall know ‒ Current status of all critical facilities Failure, degradation, disconnection could result in SOL or IROL violations ‒ Status of facilities required for restoration

2011 System Operator Conference 25 Analysis IRO purpose  RC shall ensure the BES is assessed during operations horizon to prevent ‒ Instability ‒ Uncontrolled separation ‒ Cascading outages 25

2011 System Operator Conference 26 Analysis IRO R1  RC shall perform Operational Planning Analysis ‒ Will the planned operations for the next day cause IROL? Normal Conditions Contingency Event Conditions

2011 System Operator Conference 27 Analysis IRO R2  RC shall perform Real-Time Assessment ‒ Will the planned operations in the next 30 minutes cause IROL?

2011 System Operator Conference 28 Analysis IRO R3  RC determines results of ‒ Operational Planning Analysis ‒ Real-Time Assessment Indicate need for specific operational actions, RC shall share results with those entities expected to take action  RC must prevent or mitigate instance of exceeding IROL

2011 System Operator Conference 29 Measures of Compliance Signed agreements Job descriptions Authority letter signed by officer of the company Records of training sessions Monitoring procedures Operator performing RC task has NERC RC credential Operator logs Voice recordings/transcripts of voice recordings

2011 System Operator Conference 30 Reconfigure Redispatch Reduce Standards of Conduct NERC StandardsRegional Standards RC Authority Plans Agreements Monitor Analyze Delegate Comply

2011 System Operator Conference 31 Summary Reliability Coordination takes the wide-area view to prevent instability, uncontrolled separation and/or cascading outages that would adversely affect the reliability of the BES Reliability Coordinators (RCs) are the highest authority preserving reliability on the BES, and perform operational assessments NERC Standard IRO-001 addresses the RC responsibility, RC authority, and RC ability to delegate tasks, but retain compliance responsibility NERC Standard IRO-003 addresses the requirement that an RC must have a wide-area view of its own area and adjacent RCs and know the status of all critical facilities NERC Standard IRO-008 addresses the requirement that RCs perform next-day and real-time system assessments and communicate any need for action to the appropriate entities

2011 System Operator Conference 32 Questions?