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TRANSCRIPT
NERC | RISC Member Handbook | February 2015 I
Member HandbookReliability Issues Steering Committee
February 2015
NERC | RISC Member Handbook | February 2015 ii
Table of Contents
Preface ....................................................................................................................................................................... iii
Overview .................................................................................................................................................................... iv
Introduction ................................................................................................................................................................ v
Background ............................................................................................................................................................. v
Standards Process Input Group .............................................................................................................................. v
Initial Formation of RISC ......................................................................................................................................... v
Integration of RISC into the NERC Planning Process ............................................................................................... v
Roles and Responsibilities of Members..................................................................................................................... 1
Responsibilities of All Members ............................................................................................................................ 1
Specific Membership Roles and Responsibilities ................................................................................................... 2
The Reliability Risk Management Framework ........................................................................................................... 4
Strategic Planning and Prioritization of Reliability Risks ....................................................................................... 4
Committee Deliverables ............................................................................................................................................ 7
Reliability Leadership Summit ............................................................................................................................... 7
ERO Reliability Risk Priorities Report ..................................................................................................................... 8
NERC | RISC Member Handbook | February 2015 iii
Preface The North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) is a not‐for‐profit international regulatory authority whose mission is to assure the reliability of the bulk power system (BPS) in North America. NERC develops and enforces Reliability Standards; annually assesses seasonal and long‐term reliability; monitors the BPS through system awareness; and educates, trains, and certifies industry personnel. NERC’s area of responsibility spans the continental United States, Canada, and the northern portion of Baja California, Mexico. NERC is the electric reliability organization (ERO) for North America, subject to oversight by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and governmental authorities in Canada. NERC’s jurisdiction includes users, owners, and operators of the BPS, which serves more than 334 million people. The North American BPS is divided into several assessment areas within the eight Regional Entity (RE) boundaries, as shown in the map and corresponding table below.
FRCC Florida Reliability Coordinating Council
MRO Midwest Reliability Organization
NPCC Northeast Power Coordinating Council
RF ReliabilityFirst
SERC SERC Reliability Corporation
SPP‐RE Southwest Power Pool Regional Entity
TRE Texas Reliability Entity
WECC Western Electricity Coordinating Council
NERC | RISC Member Handbook | February 2015 iv
Overview
NERC provides this handbook to the members of the Reliability Issues Steering Committee (RISC) as an overview of the committee’s history, functions, and processes as well as a description of general roles and responsibilities of each member. While the RISC charter describes the general expectations of RISC, this document offers membership specifics and how the vision for RISC is realized in practice.
NERC | RISC Member Handbook | February 2015 v
Introduction Background Standards Process Input Group At its February 2012 meeting, the NERC Board of Trustees requested the assistance of the NERC Member Representatives Committee (MRC) to provide policy input and a proposed framework for specific improvements to the NERC standards development process. The MRC chair and vice chair invited several members of the MRC, two NERC Board members, NERC’s CEO, and the Standards Committee (SC) chair to join them as participants in an ad hoc group for this purpose. Dubbed the Standards Process Input Group (SPIG), it focused on reviewing the scope of standards projects, the process for drafting standards, the project management and oversight model, and the ballot and comment process used for standards. The SPIG made a number of recommendations. One of its principal recommendations was to create the Reliability Issues Steering Committee (RISC) to address issues of accountability by ensuring that NERC develop appropriate standards using an efficient method. A copy of this report can be found on the NERC website at: http://www.nerc.com/comm/RISC/Agenda%20Highlights%20and%20Minutes/Item%202%20‐%20Standards_Process_Input_Group_04.24.12_ver_8_FINAL.pdf.
Initial Formation of RISC Upon completion of the SPIG report, implementation efforts began. After RISC was chartered, members were contacted to serve. RISC held its first public meeting at the NERC offices in Atlanta on October 22, 2012. The group first developed a generalized framework for thinking about reliability risk, then used that framework to develop a prioritized set of risk areas where NERC could apply a significant amount of its resources. RISC published the results of its efforts in reports and presented them to the NERC Board in February and August of 2013.
Integration of RISC into the NERC Planning Process The NERC Board recommended that NERC staff work with RISC to develop a process to ensure the priorities of RISC were incorporated into the overall NERC planning process (i.e., that they include the development of corporate goals and standing committee work plans). Working with RISC and other key stakeholders, NERC staff developed the Reliability Risk Management Framework, where the exchange of this information occurs. This process and the role RISC plays are described in detail later in this handbook.
NERC | RISC Member Handbook | February 2015 1
Roles and Responsibilities of Members
Responsibilities of All Members1 RISC members are tasked with a number of responsibilities. All committee members are expected to:
Contribute to the work and success of the committee by expressing their opinions at committee meetings.
Respond promptly to all committee requests for attendance, reviews, comments, and voting.
Assist in educating industry on the prioritization of reliability issues.
Uphold NERC’s mission and that of the committee rather than for individuals or other organizations. This duty includes compliance with NERC’s policies on conflicts of interest.
Promote NERC’s stated objectives.
All members are responsible for evaluating BPS reliability risks and issues. To conduct this analysis, members should use a strategic view as they receive input from various sources throughout the year. RISC uses this input to advise the Board on the prioritization of proposed solutions. An overview of this process can be seen in Figure 1.
Figure 1: RISC Analysis
1 Current membership is listed here: http://www.nerc.com/comm/RISC/Related%20Files%20DL/Forms/Default.aspx.
Roles and Responsibilities of Members
NERC | RISC Member Handbook | February 2015 2
Specific Membership Roles and Responsibilities Membership is comprised of stakeholder and committee representatives who provide a broad ERO perspective when assessing and prioritizing risks. A wide range of BPS expertise is essential for recommending a balanced portfolio of projects to address risk. As they represent different areas, certain members may have additional responsibilities beyond those of regular members.
MRC Members MRC members serve as liaisons between RISC and the broader membership of the MRC. As such, their perspectives are critical for ensuring that the development of annual budgets, business plans and funding mechanisms, and other matters pertinent to the purpose and operations of the corporation reflect the priority risks and risk management approaches recommended by RISC.
At least one of the MRC members of RISC should provide an official status report on RISC activities to the MRC at each of their quarterly in‐person meetings. Similarly, at least one MRC member of RISC should provide a report to RISC following each quarterly in‐person meeting of the MRC. As a result, the two committees should be more cognizant of the broader view of priorities within the ERO.
In addition, MRC members play a significant role in the establishment of consensus support within the ranks of the industry’s strategic thought leaders. MRC members should work with their colleagues to solicit feedback and share ideas to communicate broader strategy and considerations between groups.
Operating Committee, Planning Committee, and Critical Infrastructure Protection Committee Members The Operating Committee (OC), Planning Committee (PC), and Critical Infrastructure Protection Committee (CIPC) are NERC’s primary pools of technical experts. The OC provides expertise on operations: the activities that occur between real‐time and roughly day‐ahead scheduling. This includes balancing, scheduling, switching, emergency procedures, and similar activities. Longer‐term reliability of the interconnected Bulk Electric System (BES) in North America is assessed by the PC, which also encourages resource adequacy. Physical security and cybersecurity of the critical electricity infrastructure of North America is improved by the CIPC. Representatives from these committees have four distinct responsibilities:
1. Reliability Risk Identification and Analysis If the committees or their subcommittees, working groups, or task forces identify any new risks to reliability they believe should be acted upon, the representative of that committee is responsible for ensuring the risk is analyzed and providing a recommended course of action to RISC.
2. Reliability Risk Analysis Consultation From time to time, RISC may request that one or more committees review an issue and provide an expert opinion on the best ways to manage the risk in question. The representative committee is responsible for ensuring the analysis of that risk is undertaken and for providing a recommended course of action to RISC.
3. Reliability Risk Area Prioritization One of RISC’s key deliverables is a prioritized list of strategic risk areas. Members from the OC, PC, and CIPC are expected to represent the technical opinion of their associated committees fairly and consistently in the evaluation of risk areas and to communicate outcomes of RISC prioritization to their committees.
4. Reliability Risk Area Analysis Once priority risk areas have been identified, members of the technical committees are responsible for bringing those areas back to their respective committees to undertake a more detailed analysis. They
Roles and Responsibilities of Members
NERC | RISC Member Handbook | February 2015 3
must identify key risks within the risk area, the current state of risk management, and any gaps to be addressed.
Compliance and Certification Committee Member The Compliance and Certification Committee (CCC) is appointed by the NERC Board, which it reports to and serves. As a RISC member, the CCC representative advises the group in the applicable facets of the NERC Compliance Monitoring and Enforcement Program (CMEP). RISC uses this information to prioritize reliability risks for the ERO. Additionally, the CCC representative works within RISC to prioritize all identified ERO risks and the associated projects to address them.
Standards Committee Member The SC chair represents the NERC Standards department by ensuring that RISC is informed of the Reliability Standards development process and by coordinating with RISC as appropriate.
One key way this occurs is through the coordinated development of the Reliability Standards Development Plan each year. The SC develops the plan with the intent of supporting the identified priority risk areas, then provides the plan to RISC for review and feedback before finalization. This ensures timely development and maintenance of a comprehensive set of results‐based Reliability Standards to address the most important risks to reliability. Similar to the other committee members, the SC member works with RISC to prioritize risks and associated projects.
NERC | RISC Member Handbook | February 2015 4
The Reliability Risk Management Framework
Strategic Planning and Prioritization of Reliability Risks As the scope is large and complex, strategic planning and prioritization of risks is needed to ensure effective and efficient utilization of resources. RISC assists the Board by identifying, prioritizing, analyzing, and recommending solutions to reliability risks. Figure 2 shows RISC’s process. RISC analyses are referred to as "risk profiles”. The risk profiles are then used to develop the ERO Reliability Risk Priorities. Tactical and strategic items are incorporated into the ERO 3‐Year Strategic Plan.
Figure 2: RISC Framework In the strategic plan, NERC staff assigns work in conjunction with the committee chairs. The standing committees develop work plans that are coordinated with and complementary to those of the Regions and NERC staff.
The Reliability Risk Management Framework
NERC | RISC Member Handbook | February 2015 5
Appropriate metrics for each work plan are developed. These metrics can then be used to assess the goals at the regional and NERC staff levels.
The Strategic Planning Phase In the third quarter, RISC develops risk recommendations and identifies key areas of reliability risk for further analysis. The ERO Risk Priorities Report is released in the quarter to align with the ERO Enterprise strategic planning and ERO business plan and budget processes. RISC uses both evaluation input and reactionary input to formulate the report. RISC can then determine if any additional lagging indicators or leading indicators need to be incorporated.
Evaluation Input This input is from resources that are released on a predictable timetable every year. It includes reports such as the State of Reliability (SOR) and Long‐Term Reliability Assessment (LTRA). As a starting point, key findings from the LTRA are released in the last quarter of a given year. Based on this review, RISC determines if any additional leading indicators need to be incorporated into the outline of the RISC recommendations report. The second evaluation input is the SOR report. Developed in the second quarter, this report provides a snapshot of the status of lagging indicators to the overall reliability of the BPS.
Reactionary Input The second input is reactionary, meaning that it is based on reactions to events or conditions that fall outside of normal BPS planning. This type of input is from the FERC Reliability Technical Conference, Reliability Leadership Summit, Event Analysis, technical committees, pulse point interviews, and ERO metrics. FERC holds a commissioner‐led technical conference in the second quarter to discuss policy issues related to the reliability of the BPS. New to RISC this year is the addition of pulse point interviews. These interviews will be conducted with key industry leaders about reliability threats they see. In the third quarter, a joint RISC/NERC event known as the Reliability Leadership Summit occurs. In this moderated forum, executive‐level leaders discuss the threats, challenges, and opportunities that affect BPS reliability. Throughout the year, additional feedback is gathered from Event Analysis, technical committees, and ERO metrics. Results and insights from these sources are used to identify, assess, and manage reliability priorities across the ERO; RISC uses all of this information to assess the top‐priority risks. NERC staff and RISC develop the ERO Risk Priorities Report. Figure 3 summarizes the key activities for the strategic planning phase.
The Reliability Risk Management Framework
NERC | RISC Member Handbook | February 2015 6
Figure 3: Reliability Risk Management Process
NERC | RISC Member Handbook | February 2015 7
Committee Deliverables Reliability Leadership Summit In the third quarter, NERC and RISC host an annual leadership summit. Vibrant interactions, discussions, and constructive contributions also occur, which help RISC members better understand and prioritize reliability risks.
In the fall of 2012, NERC held the first annual Reliability Issues Information Sharing Conference. The objective of this conference was for industry leaders to have a discussion of reliability risks and emerging issues. Four panels covered:
engineering and planning issues;
recent events, lessons learned, and moving forward;
the changing landscape; and
non‐traditional threats.
RISC used the information shared in this conference as a basis for prioritizing risks.
Following the success of the first conference, NERC hosted the 2013 Reliability Leadership Summit. Panels in this summit covered:
planning for change;
modeling and analysis of system behavior;
operations challenges; and
infrastructure protection from malicious attack.
NERC used key points garnered from the dialogue and engagement at the summit to develop its 2014 Business Plan and Budget and help promote industry alignment regarding reliability initiatives. Both NERC and RISC hosted the 2014 Reliability Leadership Summit. Panels covered:
the changing resource mix, new technologies, and the impact on operations;
resource adequacy and complex interdependencies;
preparing for the worst: resiliency and recovery; and
leadership round table: next steps for reliability. During the leadership round table, six key themes emerged. Input received throughout the day from the electric industry leaders as well as top state and federal officials reinforced these subjects. Interdependencies, resiliency, regulatory and structural uncertainty, adequacy of both transmission and generation, resource commitment confidence and visibility, and situational awareness became the high‐priority areas for NERC’s allocation of resources. Going forward, RISC and NERC plan to develop agendas and conference logistics collaboratively, ensuring that the insights of RISC leadership help shape the content of the summit for maximum effectiveness.
Committee Deliverables
NERC | RISC Member Handbook | February 2015 8
ERO Reliability Risk Priorities Report The themes identified in the summit were incorporated into the ERO Reliability Risk Priorities: RISC Updates and Recommendations report dated October 2014. This report is developed annually by RISC with assistance from NERC staff. Key input used to shape the report includes an ongoing gap analysis and the summit.
Gap Analysis Throughout the year, RISC conducts a gap analysis to determine what additional areas need to be addressed to improve the reliability of the BPS. The gap analysis include the following considerations:
whether existing efforts for a given risk area are sufficient;
whether all of the existing efforts are needed and, if not, what can be eliminated;
whether existing efforts are duplicative of what other organizations are doing;
whether existing efforts are done in concert with the work of other organizations;
whether existing efforts are sufficient and how to address gaps if they aren’t; and
whether new efforts are needed.
If new efforts are needed, then RISC also considers:
whether the new effort is within NERC’s scope, or if it should be directed to another organization;
what gap in existing efforts was identified that this new effort was meant to address;
whether data is available to scope the new activity; and
whether performance can be measured.
As RISC continues to evolve, it is placing additional emphasis on measuring risk areas. By measuring at the aggregate level, progress toward addressing risks becomes visible. Feedback received from the gap analysis and the summit are used to construct the final recommendations for the year. As described previously, this input is considered in the strategic planning process as well as the annual business plan and budgeting process.