TOP-001-6 – Transmission Operations

TOP-001-6 – Transmission Operations

Purpose
To prevent instability, uncontrolled separation, or Cascading outages that adversely impact the reliability of the Interconnection by ensuring prompt action to prevent or mitigate such occurrences.

Applicability

4.1. Functional Entities:

4.1.1. Balancing Authority

4.1.2. Transmission Operator

4.1.3. Generator Operator

4.1.4. Distribution Provider

Effective Date
See Implementation Plan

Requirements and Measures

R1. Each Transmission Operator shall act to maintain the reliability of its Transmission Operator Area via its own actions or by issuing Operating Instructions. [ViolationRisk Factor: High][Time Horizon: Same-Day Operations, Real-time Operations]

M1. Each Transmission Operator shall have and provide evidence which may include but is not limited to dated operator logs, dated records, dated and time-stamped voice recordings or dated transcripts of voice recordings, electronic communications, or equivalent documentation, that will be used to determine that it acted to maintain the reliability of its Transmission Operator Area via its own actions or by issuing Operating Instructions.

R2. Each Balancing Authority shall act to maintain the reliability of its BalancingAuthority Area via its own actions or by issuing Operating Instructions. [Violation Risk Factor: High][Time Horizon: Same-Day Operations, Real-time Operations]

M2. Each Balancing Authority shall have and provide evidence which may include but is not limited to dated operator logs, dated records, dated and time-stamped voice recordings or dated transcripts of voice recordings, electronic communications, or equivalent documentation, that will be used to determine that it acted to maintain the reliability of its Balancing Authority Area via its own actions or by issuing Operating Instructions.

R3. Each Balancing Authority, Generator Operator, and Distribution Provider shall comply with each Operating Instruction issued by its Transmission Operator(s), unless such action cannot be physically implemented or it would violate safety, equipment, regulatory, or statutory requirements. [Violation Risk Factor: High] [Time Horizon: Same-Day Operations, Real-Time Operations]

M3. Each Balancing Authority, Generator Operator, and Distribution Provider shall make available upon request, evidence that it complied with each Operating Instruction issued by the Transmission Operator(s) unless such action could not be physically implemented or it would have violated safety, equipment, regulatory, or statutory requirements. Such evidence could include but is not limited to dated operator logs, voice recordings or transcripts of voice recordings, electronic communications, or other equivalent evidence in electronic or hard copy format. In such cases, the Balancing Authority, Generator Operator, and Distribution Provider shall have and provide copies of the safety, equipment, regulatory, or statutory requirements as evidence for not complying with the Transmission Operator’s Operating Instruction. If such a situation has not occurred, the Balancing Authority, Generator Operator, or Distribution Provider may provide an attestation.

R4. Each Balancing Authority, Generator Operator, and Distribution Provider shall inform its Transmission Operator of its inability to comply with an Operating Instruction issued by its Transmission Operator. [Violation Risk Factor: High] [Time Horizon: Same-Day Operations, Real-Time Operations]

M4. Each Balancing Authority, Generator Operator, and Distribution Provider shall make available upon request, evidence which may include but is not limited to dated operator logs, voice recordings or transcripts of voice recordings, electronic communications, or equivalent evidence in electronic or hard copy format, that it informed its Transmission Operator of its inability to comply with its Operating Instruction issued. If such a situation has not occurred, the Balancing Authority, Generator Operator, or Distribution Provider may provide an attestation.

R5. Each Transmission Operator, Generator Operator, and Distribution Provider shall comply with each Operating Instruction issued by its Balancing Authority, unless such action cannot be physically implemented or it would violate safety, equipment, regulatory, or statutory requirements. [Violation Risk Factor: High] [Time Horizon: Same-Day Operations, Real-Time Operations]

M5. Each Transmission Operator, Generator Operator, and Distribution Provider shall make available upon request, evidence that it complied with each Operating Instruction issued by its Balancing Authority unless such action could not be physically implemented or it would have violated safety, equipment, regulatory, or statutory requirements. Such evidence could include but is not limited to dated operator logs, voice recordings or transcripts of voice recordings, electronic communications, or other equivalent evidence in electronic or hard copy format. In such cases, the Transmission Operator, Generator Operator, and Distribution Provider shall have and provide copies of the safety, equipment, regulatory, or statutory requirements as evidence for not complying with the Balancing Authority’s Operating Instruction. If such a situation has not occurred, the Transmission Operator, Generator Operator, or Distribution Provider may provide an attestation.

R6. Each Transmission Operator, Generator Operator, and Distribution Provider shall inform its Balancing Authority of its inability to comply with an Operating Instruction issued by its Balancing Authority. [Violation Risk Factor: High] [Time Horizon: SameDay Operations, Real-Time Operations]

M6. Each Transmission Operator, Generator Operator, and Distribution Provider shall make available upon request, evidence which may include but is not limited to dated operator logs, voice recordings or transcripts of voice recordings, electronic communications, or equivalent evidence in electronic or hard copy format, that it informed its Balancing Authority of its inability to comply with its Operating Instruction. If such a situation has not occurred, the Transmission Operator, Generator Operator, or Distribution Provider may provide an attestation.

R7. Each Transmission Operator shall assist other Transmission Operators within its Reliability Coordinator Area, if requested and able, provided that the requesting Transmission Operator has implemented its comparable Emergency procedures, unless such assistance cannot be physically implemented or would violate safety, equipment, regulatory, or statutory requirements. [Violation Risk Factor: High][Time Horizon: Real-Time Operations]

M7. Each Transmission Operator shall make available upon request, evidence that comparable requested assistance, if able, was provided to other Transmission Operators within its Reliability Coordinator Area unless such assistance could not be physically implemented or would have violated safety, equipment, regulatory, or statutory requirements. Such evidence could include but is not limited to dated operator logs, voice recordings or transcripts of voice recordings, electronic communications, or other equivalent evidence in electronic or hard copy format. If no request for assistance was received, the Transmission Operator may provide an attestation.

R8. Each Transmission Operator shall inform its Reliability Coordinator, known impacted Balancing Authorities, and known impacted Transmission Operators of its actual or expected operations that result in, or could result in, an Emergency. [Violation Risk Factor: High] [Time Horizon: Operations Planning, Same-Day Operations, Real-Time Operations]

M8. Each Transmission Operator shall make available upon request, evidence that it informed its Reliability Coordinator, known impacted Balancing Authorities, and known impacted Transmission Operators of its actual or expected operations that result in, or could result in, an Emergency. Such evidence could include but is not limited to dated operator logs, voice recordings or transcripts of voice recordings, electronic communications, or other equivalent evidence. If no such situations have occurred, the Transmission Operator may provide an attestation.

R9. Each Balancing Authority and Transmission Operator shall notify its Reliability Coordinator and known impacted interconnected entities of all planned outages, and unplanned outages of 30 minutes or more, for telemetering and control equipment, monitoring and assessment capabilities, and associated communication channels between the affected entities. [Violation Risk Factor: Medium] [Time Horizon: Operations Planning, Same-Day Operations, Real-Time Operations]

M9. Each Balancing Authority and Transmission Operator shall make available upon request, evidence that it notified its Reliability Coordinator and known impacted interconnected entities of all planned outages, and unplanned outages of 30 minutes or more, for telemetering and control equipment, monitoring and assessment capabilities, and associated communication channels. Such evidence could includebut is not limited to dated operator logs, voice recordings or transcripts of voice recordings, electronic communications, or other equivalent evidence. If such a situation has not occurred, the Balancing Authority or Transmission Operator may provide an attestation.

R10. Each Transmission Operator shall perform the following for determining System Operating Limit (SOL) exceedances within its Transmission Operator Area: [Violation Risk Factor: High] [Time Horizon: Real-Time Operations]

10.1. Monitor Facilities within its Transmission Operator Area;

10.2. Monitor the status of Remedial Action Schemes within its Transmission Operator Area;

10.3. Monitor non-BES facilities within its Transmission Operator Area identifiedas necessary by the Transmission Operator;

10.4. Obtain and utilize status, voltages, and flow data for Facilities outside its Transmission Operator Area identified as necessary by the Transmission Operator;

10.5. Obtain and utilize the status of Remedial Action Schemes outside its Transmission Operator Area identified as necessary by theTransmission Operator; and

10.6. Obtain and utilize status, voltages, and flow data for non-BES facilities outside its Transmission Operator Area identified as necessary by the Transmission Operator.

M10. Each Transmission Operator shall have, and provide upon request, evidence that could include but is not limited to Energy Management System description documents, computer printouts, Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) data collection, or other equivalent evidence that will be used to confirm that it monitored or obtained and utilized data as required to determine any System Operating Limit (SOL) exceedances within its Transmission Operator Area.

R11. Each Balancing Authority shall monitor its Balancing Authority Area, including the status of Remedial Action Schemes that impact generation or Load, in order to maintain generation-Load-interchange balance within its Balancing Authority Area and support Interconnection frequency. [Violation Risk Factor: High] [Time Horizon: Real-Time Operations]

M11. Each Balancing Authority shall have, and provide upon request, evidence that could include but is not limited to Energy Management System description documents, computer printouts, SCADA data collection, or other equivalent evidence that will be used to confirm that it monitors its Balancing Authority Area, including the status of Remedial Action Schemes that impact generation or Load, in order to maintain generation-Load-interchange balance within its Balancing Authority Area and support Interconnection frequency.

R12. Each Transmission Operator shall not operate outside any identified Interconnection Reliability Operating Limit (IROL) for a continuous duration exceeding its associated IROL Tv. [Violation Risk Factor: High] [Time Horizon: Real-time Operations]

M12. Each Transmission Operator shall make available evidence to show that for any occasion in which it operated outside any identified Interconnection Reliability Operating Limit (IROL), the continuous duration did not exceed its associated IROL Tv. Such evidence could include but is not limited to dated computer logs or reports in electronic or hard copy format specifying the date, time, duration, and details of the excursion. If such a situation has not occurred, the Transmission Operator may provide an attestation that an event has not occurred.

R13. Each Transmission Operator shall ensure that a Real-time Assessment is performed at least once every 30 minutes. [Violation Risk Factor: High] [Time Horizon: Real-time Operations]

M13. Each Transmission Operator shall have, and make available upon request, evidence to show it ensured that a Real-Time Assessment was performed at least once every 30 minutes. This evidence could include but is not limited to dated computer logs showing times the assessment was conducted, dated checklists, or other evidence.

R14. Each Transmission Operator shall initiate its Operating Plan to mitigate a SOL exceedance identified as part of its Real-time monitoring or Real-time Assessment. [Violation Risk Factor: High] [Time Horizon: Real-time Operations]

M14. Each Transmission Operator shall have evidence that it initiated its Operating Plan for mitigating SOL exceedances identified as part of its Real-time monitoring or Real-time Assessments. This evidence could include but is not limited to dated computer logs showing times the Operating Plan was initiated, dated checklists, or other evidence. Other evidence could include but is not limited to: Reliability Coordinator’s SOL methodology, system logs/records showing successfully mitigated SOL exceedances in conjunction with Operating Plans (e.g. mutually agreed operating protocols between TOPs and their Reliability Coordinator, Operating Procedures, Operating Processes, operating policies, generator redispatch logs, equipment settings for automatically switched equipment and reactive power/voltage control devices, switching schedules, etc.).

R15. Each Transmission Operator shall inform its Reliability Coordinator of actions taken to return the System to within limits when a SOL has been exceeded in accordance with its Reliability Coordinator’s SOL methodology. [Violation Risk Factor: Medium] [Time Horizon: Real-Time Operations]

M15. Each Transmission Operator shall make available evidence that it informed its Reliability Coordinator of actions taken to return the System to within limits when a SOL was exceeded in accordance with its Reliability Coordinator’s SOL methodology. Such evidence could include but is not limited to dated operator logs, electronic communications, voice recordings or transcripts of voice recordings, or dated computer printouts. If such a situation has not occurred, the Transmission Operator may provide an attestation.

R16. Each Transmission Operator shall provide its System Operators with the authority to approve planned outages and maintenance of its telemetering and control equipment, monitoring and assessment capabilities, and associated communication channels between affected entities. [Violation Risk Factor: High] [Time Horizon: Operations Planning, Same-Day Operations, Real-time Operations]

M16. Each Transmission Operator shall have, and provide upon request, evidence that could include but is not limited to a documented procedure or equivalent evidence that will be used to confirm that the Transmission Operator has provided its System Operators with the authority to approve planned outages and maintenance of telemetering and control equipment, monitoring and assessment capabilities, and associated communication channels between affected entities.

R17. Each Balancing Authority shall provide its System Operators with the authority to approve planned outages and maintenance of its telemetering and control equipment, monitoring and assessment capabilities, and associated communication channels between affected entities. [Violation Risk Factor: High] [Time Horizon: Operations Planning, Same-Day Operations, Real-time Operations]

M17. Each Balancing Authority shall have, and provide upon request, evidence that could include but is not limited to a documented procedure or equivalent evidence that will be used to confirm that the Balancing Authority has provided its System Operators with the authority to approve planned outages and maintenance of its telemetering and control equipment, monitoring and assessment capabilities, and associated communication channels between affected entities. R18. Each Transmission Operator shall operate to the most limiting parameter in instances where there is a difference in SOLs. [Violation Risk Factor: High] [Time Horizon: Operations Planning, Same-Day Operations, Real-time Operations]

M18. Each Transmission Operator shall have, and provide upon request, evidence that could include but is not limited to operator logs, voice recordings, electronic communications, or equivalent evidence that will be used to determine if it operated to the most limiting parameter in instances where there is a difference in SOLs.

R19. Reserved.

M19. Reserved.

R20. Each Transmission Operator shall have data exchange capabilities, with redundant and diversely routed data exchange infrastructure within the TransmissionOperator’s primary Control Center, for the exchange of Real-time data with its Reliability Coordinator, Balancing Authority, and the entities it has identified it needs data from in order for it to perform its Real-time monitoring and Real-time Assessments. [Violation Risk Factor: High] [Time Horizon: Same-Day Operations, Real-time Operations]

M20. Each Transmission Operator shall have, and provide upon request, evidence that could include, but is not limited to, system specifications, system diagrams, or other documentation that lists its data exchange capabilities, including redundant and diversely routed data exchange infrastructure within the Transmission Operator’s primary Control Center, for the exchange of Real-time data with its Reliability Coordinator, Balancing Authority, and the entities it has identified it needs data from in order to perform its Real-time monitoring and Real-time Assessments as specified in the requirement.

R21. Each Transmission Operator shall test its primary Control Center data exchange capabilities specified in Requirement R20 for redundant functionality at least once every 90 calendar days. If the test is unsuccessful, the Transmission Operator shall initiate action within two hours to restore redundant functionality. [Violation Risk Factor: Medium ] [Time Horizon: Operations Planning]

M21. Each Transmission Operator shall have, and provide upon request, evidence that it tested its primary Control Center data exchange capabilities specified in Requirement R20 for the redundant functionality, or experienced an event that demonstrated the redundant functionality; and, if the test was unsuccessful, initiated action within two hours to restore redundant functionality as specified in Requirement R21. Evidence could include, but is not limited to: dated and time-stamped test records, operator logs, voice recordings, or electronic communications.

R22. Reserved.

M22. Reserved.

R23. Each Balancing Authority shall have data exchange capabilities, with redundant and diversely routed data exchange infrastructure within the Balancing Authority’s primary Control Center, for the exchange of Real-time data with its Reliability Coordinator, Transmission Operator, and the entities it has identified it needs data from in order for it to perform its Real-time monitoring and analysis functions. [Violation Risk Factor: High] [Time Horizon: Same-Day Operations, Real-time Operations]

M23. Each Balancing Authority shall have, and provide upon request, evidence that could include, but is not limited to, system specifications, system diagrams, or other documentation that lists its data exchange capabilities, including redundant and diversely routed data exchange infrastructure within the Balancing Authority’s primary Control Center, for the exchange of Real-time data with its Reliability Coordinator, Transmission Operator, and the entities it has identified it needs data from in order to perform its Real-time monitoring and analysis functions as specified in the requirement.

R24. Each Balancing Authority shall test its primary Control Center data exchange capabilities specified in Requirement R23 for redundant functionality at least once every 90 calendar days. If the test is unsuccessful, the Balancing Authority shall initiate action within two hours to restore redundant functionality. [Violation Risk Factor: Medium ] [Time Horizon: Operations Planning]

M24. Each Balancing Authority shall have, and provide upon request, evidence that it tested its primary Control Center data exchange capabilities specified in Requirement R23 for redundant functionality, or experienced an event that demonstrated the redundant functionality; and, if the test was unsuccessful, initiated action within two hours to restore redundant functionality as specified in Requirement R24. Evidence could include, but is not limited to: dated and time-stamped test records, operator logs, voice recordings, or electronic communications.

R25. Each Transmission Operator shall use the applicable Reliability Coordinator’s SOL methodology when determining SOL exceedances for Real-time Assessments, Realtime monitoring, and Operational Planning Analysis. [Violation Risk Factor: High ] [Time Horizon: Same-Day Operations, Real-time Operations, Operations Planning]

M25. Each Transmission Operator shall have, and provide upon request, evidence that it used the applicable Reliability Coordinator’s SOL methodology when determining SOL exceedances for Real-time Assessments, Real-time monitoring, and Operational Planning Analysis. Evidence could include, but is not limited to: Reliability Coordinator’s SOL methodology, Operating Plans, contingency sets, alarming and study reporting thresholds, operator logs, voice recordings or other equivalent evidence.

Compliance

1. Compliance Monitoring Process

1.1. Compliance Enforcement Authority:
“Compliance Enforcement Authority” means NERC or the Regional Entity, orany entity as otherwise designated by an Applicable Governmental Authority, in their respective roles of monitoring and/or enforcing compliance with mandatory and enforceable Reliability Standards in their respective jurisdictions.

1.2. Evidence Retention:
The following evidence retention period(s) identify the period of time an entity is required to retain specific evidence to demonstrate compliance. For instances where the evidence retention period specified below is shorter than the time since the last audit, the Compliance Enforcement Authority may ask an entity to provide other evidence to show that it was compliant for the full-time period since the last audit.

The applicable entity shall keep data or evidence to show compliance as identified below unless directed by its Compliance Enforcement Authority to retain specific evidence for a longer period of time as part of an investigation.

• Each Balancing Authority, Transmission Operator, Generator Operator, and Distribution Provider shall each keep data or evidence for each applicable Requirement R1 through R11, and Measure M1 throughM11, for the current calendar year and one previous calendar year, with the exception of operator logs and voice recordings which shall be retained for a minimum of 90 calendar days, unless directed by its Compliance Enforcement Authority to retain specific evidence for a longer period of time as part of an investigation.
• Each Transmission Operator shall retain evidence for three calendaryears of any occasion in which it has exceeded an identified IROL and its associated IROL Tv as specified in Requirement R12 and Measure M12.
• Each Transmission Operator shall keep data or evidence forRequirement R13 and Measure M13 for a rolling 30-day period, unless directed by its Compliance Enforcement Authority to retain specific evidence for a longer period of time as part of an investigation.
• Each Transmission Operator shall retain evidence and that it initiated its Operating Plan to mitigate a SOL exceedance as specified in Requirement R14 and Measurement M14 for rolling 12 months.
• Each Transmission Operator and Balancing Authority shall each keep data or evidence for each applicable Requirement R15 through R18, and Measure M15 through M18 for the current calendar year and one previous calendar year, with the exception of operator logs and voice recordings which shall be retained for a minimum of 90 calendar days.
• Each Transmission Operator shall keep data or evidence forRequirement R20 and Measure M20 for the current calendar year and one previous calendar year.
• Each Transmission Operator shall keep evidence for Requirement R21and Measure M21 for the most recent twelve calendar months, with the exception of operator logs and voice recordings which shall be retained for a minimum of 90 calendar days.
• Each Balancing Authority shall keep data or evidence for Requirement R23 and Measure M23 for the current calendar year and oneprevious calendar year.
• Each Balancing Authority shall keep evidence for Requirement R24 and Measure M24 for the most recent twelve calendar months, with the exception of operator logs and voice recordings which shall be retained for a minimum of 90 calendar days.
• Each Transmission Operator shall retain evidence that it used the applicable Reliability Coordinator’s SOL methodology when determining SOL exceedances for Real-time Assessments, Real-time monitoring, and Operational Planning Analysis as specified in Requirement R25 and Measurement M25 for a rolling 12 months.

1.3. Compliance Monitoring and Enforcement Program
As defined in the NERC Rules of Procedure, “Compliance Monitoring and Enforcement Program” refers to the identification of the processes that will be used to evaluate data or information for the purpose of assessing performance or outcomes with the associated Reliability Standard.

Associated Documents
The Project 2014-03 SDT has created the SOL Exceedance White Paper as guidance on SOL issues and the URL for that document is: http://www.nerc.com/pa/stand/Pages/TOP0013RI.aspx.

Operating Plan – An Operating Plan includes general Operating Processes and specific Operating Procedures. It may be an overview document which provides a prescription for an Operating Plan for the next-day, or it may be a specific plan to address a specific SOL or IROL exceedance identified in the Operational Planning Analysis (OPA). Consistent with the NERC definition, Operating Plans can be general in nature, or they can be specific plans to address specific reliability issues. The use of the term Operating Plan in the revised TOP/IRO standards allows room for both. An Operating Plan references processes and procedures, including electronic data exchange, which are available to the System Operator on a daily basis to allow the operator to reliably address conditions which may arise throughout the day. It is valid for tomorrow, the day after, and the day after that. Operating Plans should be augmented by temporary operating guides which outline prevention/mitigation plans for specific situations which are identified day-to-day in an OPA or a Real-time Assessment (RTA). As the definition in the Glossary of Terms states, a restoration plan is an example of an Operating Plan. It contains all the overarching principles that the System Operator needs to work his/her way through the restoration process. It is not a specific document written for a specific blackout scenario but rather a collection of tools consisting of processes, procedures, and automated software systems that are available to the operator to use in restoring the system. An Operating Plan can in turn be looked upon in a similar manner. It does not contain a prescription for the specific set-up for tomorrow but contains a treatment of all the processes, procedures, and automated software systems that are at the operator’s disposal. The existence of an Operating Plan, however, does not preclude the need for creating specific action plans for specific SOL or IROL exceedances identified in the OPA. When a Reliability Coordinator performs an OPA, the analysis may reveal instances of possible SOL or IROL exceedances for pre- or post-Contingency conditions. In these instances, Reliability Coordinators are expected to ensure that there are plans in place to prevent or mitigate those SOLs or IROLs, should those operating conditions be encountered the next day. The Operating Plan may contain a description of the process by which specific prevention or mitigation plansfor day-to-day SOL or IROL exceedances identified in the OPA are handled and communicated. This approach could alleviate any potential administrative burden associated with perceived requirements for continual day-to-day updating of “the Operating Plan document” for compliance purposes