Scope:

Severe Impact Resilience Task Force (SIRTF)

116-390 Village Blvd.

Princeton, NJ 08540

609.452.8060 |

PART A: Required for Committee Approval

Purpose

This document defines the scope, objectives, organization, deliverables, and overall approach for the Severe Impact Resilience Task Force (SIRTF).

The purpose of the SIRTF is to provide guidance and options to enhance the resilience of the bulk power system to withstand and recover from severe-impact scenarios, specifically:

  • Coordinated physical attack
  • Coordinated cyber attack
  • Geomagnetic disturbance

Background

The NERC and DOE High Impact, Low Frequency Risk to the North American Bulk Power System report described a number of severe-impact scenarios and their potential impact on the reliability of the bulk power system. Subsequent to this report, the Electricity Sub-sector Coordinating Council’s (ESCC) Critical Infrastructure Strategic Roadmap identified a number of strategic initiatives to mitigate these impacts. Several of these initiatives (i.e. items E, F, H, L, and P) identify the need to assess the current capability of the bulk power system to withstand these severe-impact scenarios and to enhance restoration plans and procedures.

NERC staff and the leadership of the NERC technical committees (Planning, Operating, and Critical Infrastructure Protection Committees) have developed a Coordinated Action Plan to address the initiatives identified in the Strategic Roadmap. This scope document elaborates on the Coordinated Action Plan to establish and provide direction to the SIRTF.

Scope

The SIRTF will provide guidance and options to enhance the resilience of the bulk power system to withstand and recover from three severe-impact events as described in the Coordinated Action Plan.

  • Coordinated physical attack
  • Coordinated cyber attack
  • Geomagnetic disturbance

The SIRTF will propose approaches, practices, and plans to reduce the impact of these events through effective emergency operations and timely restoration of the bulk power system.

The SIRTF will consider what aspects of emergency operation and restoration will be particularly challenged through these severe-impact events, and consider options to enhance the resilience of the bulk power system. Preferred solutions will be flexible and based on heuristic methods applicable under a wide variety of circumstances, as opposed to fixed procedures. The SIRTF will recommend solutions for broad implementation across the electricity sector, and propose drills or exercises to reinforce this capability. These solutions could be in the form of industry guidelines that describe practices that may be used by individual entities according to local circumstances.

The SIRTF may consider establishing sub-teams to address the planning/operational and tools/systems issues that may be unique for each of the three severe-impact scenarios.

Assumptions and Limitations

The three scenarios described in the Coordinated Action Plan are intended to describe extreme conditions that would make operation and restoration much more challenging than would normally be considered by electricity entities through their usual planning and preparedness activities. While solutions that offer material improvements are preferred, it is recognized that more modest enhancementsthat are readily implemented are also valued.

It is expected that any solutions proposed to enhance existing capabilities would be broadly applicable to other severe-impact scenarios, and certainly applicable to smaller scale events.

Goals and Objectives

Goals / Objectives
Review current situation and capabilities /
  1. Recognizing that priorities will vary depending on local circumstances, consider priorities to restore critical power system loads along restoration paths (e.g. communications, nuclear units), and priority customer loads (e.g. oil refineries, military bases, hospitals, water treatment plants, public telecommunications). Consider how these priorities might differ through a range of outage durations (e.g. days, weeks, and longer).
  2. Consider operating capabilities and voice and data communications tools and energy management systems, with a focus on identifying minimum essential functional needs for reliable operation.
  3. Consider restoration plan elements such as blackstart, islanded operation, synchronization, rotational load shedding.
  4. Assess operational staffing levels and unique safety considerations under these scenarios.

Perform needs assessment /
  1. Identify elements of current operating and restoration capability that would be particularly challenged under these severe-impact scenarios.

Develop alternative solutions /
  1. Propose a range of alternative solutions and options to enhance current operating and restoration capability, including estimated costs and effort to develop and maintain this capability. Identify the residual risks that may be associated with each of these solutions.

Coordinate Solutions /
  1. Coordinate with NERC staff to integrate these solutionswith the NERC Crisis Response Plan with special emphasis on areas where local, state, and Federal resources may be required to support such efforts.

Recommend solutions /
  1. Recommend specific practices or programs for use by NERC or individual entities. Create scalable drill templates that registered entities could utilize to train personnel and enhance current restoration and operating protocols trough existing drill and exercise programs.

Task Force Reporting Structure and Coordination with Other Related Initiatives

The Task Force will:

  • Report to the Operating Committee. Seek Planning Committee endorsement prior to Operating Committee approvals.
  • Provide periodic status reports to the Operating Committee and Electricity Sub-Sector Coordinating Council
  • Coordinate closely with the Critical Infrastructure Protection Committee that will provide expertise to address Coordinated Action Plan Item F – Protect Critical Equipment
  • Coordinate closely with the Spare Equipment Database Task Force
  • Coordinate with other NERC and industry resources that may be able to contribute, such as the, Reliability Coordinator Working Group, North American Transmission Forum
  • Leverage from other recent initiatives in this area (e.g. the National Infrastructure Advisory Council’s Stress Test exercise)

Resources Required

The Task Force requires expertise in the following areas:

  • Experience with the real time operation of the bulk power system, including the communications and energy management systems and tools typically used by reliability coordinators, transmission operators, and generator operators.
  • In-depth experience with bulk power system restoration plans and procedures, including designing and conducting restoration drills and exercises.
  • Familiarity with developing situation assessment reports used to inform senior management or government.

It is anticipated that 2 conference calls per month, and a total of 4 face-to-face meetings will be required, in addition to the time required to contribute to this effort. This work is expected to begin in December 2010 and end by December 2011.

References

Name / Link
DOE/NERC HILF “High Impact, Low Frequency Risk to the North American Bulk Power System” report /
Critical Infrastructure Strategic Roadmap /
NERC Technical Committees’ Report – Critical Infrastructure Strategic Initiatives Coordinated Action Plan /

PART B: Required Following Committee Approval

Deliverables

Milestone / Deliverable
  1. Determine scope and resources
  • Confirm assumptions and limitations
  • Identify and recruit industry experts
  • Develop project plan and timelines
/
  • Accept Scope by Q4-2010

  1. Provide comprehensive assessment
  • Identify options and alternatives with pros and cons
  • Decide specific solutions
  • Propose final deliverables and timelines
/
  • First draft report or whitepaper by Q3-2011

  1. Provide final deliverables
  • Prepare final report
  • Develop new industry guidance, or enhance existing
  • Propose new or revised NERC reliability standards, where necessary and appropriate
  • Identify next steps
/
  • Final report or whitepaper by Q4-2011

Task Force Members

Role / Name / Organization
Chair
Vice-Chair
Facilitator / Larry Kezele / NERC
Member
Member
Member
Member

Prepared by:______

NERC Facilitator

Approved by: ______

Sponsor – Operating Committee

______

Date

1