NERC Regional Entity Entity Summary Report October 3, 2018

NERC |Regional Entity | Entity Summary Report | October 3, 2018

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Table of Contents

Introduction

Certification Team

Objective and Scope

Overall Conclusion

Certification Team Determinations

Items that Required Completion

Findings

Positive Observations

Company History – Background

Corporate

System Overview

Company Details – Operating Facility

Control Center/SCADA System Description

Documentation List

Attachment 1 – Certification Review Team

[Function] Certification Review Team

[ENTITY ACRONYM] Personnel

Attachment 2 – Certification Review Process Steps

Documentation Review

Applications Review [delete this section if no site visit]

Attachment 3 – Items Required to be Completed for Operation

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Introduction

This report presents the results of the [Regional Entity] led Certification Review Team’s (CRT) efforts to continue to endorse [Entity Applicant][Entity Applicant Acronym] (NCRXXXXX) as a [Reliability Coordinator (RC)/Balancing Authority (BA)/Transmission Operator (TOP)] in the [Regional Entity]’s area of responsibility certified by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC). This review was prompted by the changes due to [Change that prompted Review].

[Delete the following two paragraphs unless this is a RC Certification Report.]

The RC is the highest operating authority; the underlying premise is that reliability of a wide-area takes precedence over reliability of any single local area. Only the RC has the perspective/vision necessary to act in the interest of wide-area reliability. The RC maintains the Real-time operating reliability of its RC Area and in coordination with its neighboring RC‘s wide-area view. The wide-area view includes situational awareness of its neighboring RC Areas. Its scope includes both transmission and balancing operations, and it has the authority to direct other functional entities to take certain actions to ensure that its RC Area operates reliably.

The RC‘s purview must be broad enough to enable it to calculate Interconnection Reliability Operating Limits, which will involve system and facility operating parameters beyond its own Area as well as within it. This is in contrast to the Transmission Operator, which also maintains reliability, but is directly concerned with system parameters within its own Area. The RC also assists the TOP in relieving equipment or facility overloads through transmission loading relief measures if market-based dispatch procedures are not effective.

[Delete the following two paragraphs and list unless this is a BA Certification Report.]

The BA operates within the metered boundaries that establish the BA Area. Every generator, transmission facility, and end-use customer is in a Balancing Authority Area. The BA‘s mission is to maintain the balance between loads and resources in real time within its BA Area by keeping its actual interchange equal to its scheduled interchange and meeting its frequency bias obligation. The load-resource balance is measured by the BA‘s Area Control Error (ACE). NERC’s Reliability Standards require that the Balancing Authority maintain its ACE within acceptable limits.

Maintaining resource-demand balance within the Balancing Authority Area requires four types of resource management, all of which are the Balancing Authority’s responsibility:

Frequency control through tie-line bias
Regulation service deployment
Load-following through economic dispatch
Interchange implementation

[Delete the following paragraph unless this is a TOP Certification Report.]

TOPs have a primary responsibility for maintaining the real-time reliability of the local system, and operate, or direct the operations of the transmission facilities. Acceptable reliability levels can be maintained only if the TOPs, and other entities that make up the Interconnection, function in accordance with good operating practices and reliability criteria defined by the NERC Reliability Standards. Good operating practices include, but are not limited to, full compliance with the NERC Reliability Standards without regard to economic consideration or burdening neighboring systems.

Certification Review Team

Following notification of [Entity Applicant]’s request for certification review based upon [change that prompted the review], which was received on Month Day, Year as a [RC/BA/TOP], a CRT was formed and a review date was selected to perform an on-site visit. The rosters for members of both the CRT and the [Entity Applicant] participantsare listed in Attachment 1.

Objective and Scope

The objective of the CRTreview was to assess,following the [change that prompted the review], how [Entity Applicant]’s processes, procedures, tools, trainingand personnel allow it to continue performing the function of a [RC/BA/TOP]. [Discuss review of CFR if applicable]The scope of the review included: [delete items not reviewed by review team]

Interviewing [Entity Applicant]’s management and reviewing pertinent documentation for verification of basic requirements for [RC/BA/TOP]operation
Reviewing procedures and other documentation developed by [Entity Applicant]to meet the applicable standards/requirements
Interviewing [Entity Applicant]system operations personnel
Reviewing [Entity Applicant]’s primary capabilities, Energy Management System (EMS), communication facilities, operator displays, etc.
Performing other validation reviews as considered necessary.

An on-site review was held at the [Entity Applicant]’s primary Control Center (PCC) including a site visit to [Entity Applicant]’s Backup Control Center (BCC) on Month Day, Year.

Overall Conclusion

[Delete the Conclusion that does not apply]

[Review Approval]

The certification review process was completed in reasonable accordance with the NERC Rules of Procedure (ROP) to determine if [Entity Applicant]has the necessary processes, procedures, tools, trainingand personnel to perform the function as a NERC-certified [RC/BA/TOP][If applicable mention CFR aggrement]. [Entity Applicant]presented evidence related to the applicable standards/requirements for the CRTto review. Based on this evidentiary review, the CRT has reasonable assurance that [Entity Applicant] has the processes, procedures, tools, training and personnel in place to continue to reliably perform the [RC/BA/TOP] function. Therefore, the CRT determined a full certification is not required.

The CRT recommends that [Regional Entity][Regional Entity Acronym] approve the certification review of [Entity Applicant]as a NERC-certified [RC/BA/TOP], and forward such approval to NERC for final review and approval.

The CRT found the [Entity Applicant]operators to be equipped with the necessary operating tools, and they are prepared to perform the [RC/BA/TOP]operations. All [Entity Applicant]’s operators are NERC-certified operators.

[Review Rejection]

The certification review process was completed in reasonable accordance with the NERC Rules of Procedure (ROP) to determine if [Entity Applicant]has the necessary processes, procedures, tools, trainingand personnel to perform the function as a NERC-certified [RC/BA/TOP][If applicable mention CFR aggrement]. [Entity Applicant]presented evidence related to the applicable standards/requirements for the CRTto review. Based on this evidentiary review, the CRT has reasonable assurance that [Entity Applicant] does not have the processes, procedures, tools, training and personnel in place to continue to reliably perform the [RC/BA/TOP] function. Therefore, the CRT determined a full certification is required.

The CRT recommends that [Regional Entity][Regional Entity Acronym] reject the certification review of [Entity Applicant]as a NERC-certified [RC/BA/TOP], and forward the rejection to NERC for final review.

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Certification Review Team Determinations

Items that Required Completion

At the conclusion of the site visit, it was agreed that certain items required completion prior to the certification review approval of [Entity Acronym] as a [(RC)/(BA)/(TOP)] and a tentative schedule for completion was agreed. The list of these items is included as Attachment 3. As noted in Attachment 3, evidence of completion of these items was provided to the CRT for review and confirmation. Each item was closed to the satisfaction of the CRT prior to the issuance of this Summary Report.

Findings

No findings which would prevent [Entity Acronym] to continue as a NERC-certified [(RC)/(BA)/(TOP)] were identified by the CRT as of the issuance of this Summary Report.

Positive Observations

The CRT noted the following positive aspects that will enhance [Entity Applicant]’s performance as a [(RC)/ (BA)/ (TOP)]:

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Company History – Background

Corporate

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System Overview

Company Details – Operating Facility

Control Center/SCADA System Description

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Documentation List

Copies of all of the supporting [Entity Acronym]documents were collected as evidence of [Entity Acronym]’s preparedness, and will be kept as a record of evidence to support the CRT’s recommendation. These documents will be retained at the [Regional Entity]offices in [City, State] for a period of six (6) years.

None of the documents listed below are included with the distribution of this summary report. Due to the confidential nature of this material, these documents are available for review at the [Regional Entity]offices after proper authorization is obtained through [Regional Entity]and NERC:

[Entity Acronym]RC Questionnaire
[Entity Acronym]RC Master Matrix
[Entity Acronym]BA Questionnaire
[Entity Acronym]BA Master Matrix
[Entity Acronym]TOP Questionnaire
[Entity Acronym]TOP Master Matrix
[Entity Acronym]’s various [(RC)/(BA)/(TOP)]evidence files
Presentations made by the CRT and [Entity Acronym]
Internal Compliance Program and Internal Controls Documentation

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Attachment 1 – Certification Review Team

[Function] Certification Review Team

Table 1: [Function] Certification Review Team
Name / Position / Organization
Name:CRTL / Position / Organization
Name / Position / Organization
Name / Position / Organization
Name / Position / Organization
Name / Position / Organization
Name / Position / Organization
Name / Position / Organization

[ENTITY ACRONYM]Personnel

Table 2: Entity Personnel Participants
Name / Position
Name / Position
Name / Position
Name / Position
Name / Position
Name / Position
Name / Position
Name / Position
Name / Position
Name / Position
Name / Position
Name / Position
Name / Position
Name / Position
Name / Position
Name / Position
Name / Position

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Attachment 2 – Certification Review Process Steps

Documentation Review

Using professional judgment,the CRT reviewed the [(RC)/(BA)/(TOP)] Questionnaire, the [(RC)/(BA)/(TOP)]Master Matrix,and requested documents to determine the submitted documentation provided assurance that [Entity Acronym]has the processes, procedures, tools, trainingand personnel to continue to operate as a NERC-certified [(RC)/(BA)/(TOP)].

The [(RC)/(BA)/(TOP)] Master Matrix is a spreadsheet created using the VRF Matrix available on NERC’s website under the Standards link, and eliminating all functions other than the [(RC)/(BA)/(TOP)] function. Using the [(RC)/ (BA)/ (TOP)] Master Matrix spreadsheet, the CRTcataloged the documentation evidence provided by [Entity Acronym]. The spreadsheet contains all the applicable NERC Standards and associated Requirements for an entity to be evaluated as a NERC-certified [(RC)/ (BA)/ (TOP)]. In the certification review process, the CRT inserted the appropriate [Entity Acronym]document references in which evidence provided by [Entity Acronym]met the applicable Standards and Requirements.

Applications Review[delete this section if no site visit]

The on-site visit focused on reviewing documentation, evaluating control centers’ configurations, interview of [Entity Acronym]’s operators, evaluating the [(RC)/ (BA)/ (TOP)] EMS applications and operator toolset that [Entity Acronym]has available for their operators. (Next Sentence is Optional)A second site visited was scheduled to confirm [items from previous sentence that were not able to be reviewed].

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Attachment 3 – Items Required to be Completed for Operation

All items listed below requiring completion prior to the certification review approval of [Entity Acronym] as a [(RC)/ (BA)/ (TOP)]were closed to the satisfaction of the CRT prior to the issuance of this Summary Report.