ReliabilityFirst > Inverter-Based Resource (IBR) Registration Initiative
Inverter-Based Resource (IBR) Registration Initiative
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued an order in 2022 directing the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) to identify and register owners and operators of currently unregistered inverter-based resources (also known as “IBRs”) that are connected to the bulk power system (BPS). The purpose of this initiative is to close an identified reliability gap with IBRs connected to the BPS that have a material impact on the BPS but are unregistered and therefore not subject to the NERC Reliability Standards.
NERC is addressing the risk by requiring candidates who own and/or operate non-BES inverter-based generating resources that have an aggregate nameplate capacity of greater than or equal to 20 MVA delivering such capacity to a common point of connection at a voltage greater than or equal to 60 kV to register with NERC.
ReliabilityFirst is one of six Regional Entities that work alongside NERC as part of the Electric Reliability Organization (ERO) Enterprise. Together, along with partners in the electric utility industry and other stakeholders, we are working to identify and register all of these unregistered IBRs that are connected to the BPS by 2026 as part of an official work plan approved by FERC. In the ReliabilityFirst footprint, the most common types of IBRs include solar, wind and battery energy storage systems. For more details on this regulatory structure, click here.
For the latest updates on this initiative, see the NERC Quick Reference Guide and follow our LinkedIn. Questions related to this initiative? Please reach out to ReliabilityFirst’s Registration department via our Contact Us page.
See how the initiative will work
This video produced by NERC highlights:
- How IBRs fit into the big picture of electric grid reliability and why these entities need to be registered
- The history behind this initiative, including the FERC order directing it
- How NERC plans to identify, educate, and register currently unregistered IBRs
- What unregistered IBRs should expect, including the registration process, their compliance obligations, and timeline
Latest updates
The latest Inverter-Based Resource Registration Initiative updates from NERC include the following:
Registration
- On July 8, 2024, NERC issued a Request for Information (RFI) to all registered Balancing Authorities and Transmission Owners to identify owners and operators of IBRs connected to the bulk power system in their footprints that meet the new Generator Owner and Generator Operator Category 2 criteria.
- Responses were due to the respective Regional Entities by Sept. 20, 2024.
- The Regional Entities intend to use the responses from the RFI to validate the resources that are candidates for Category 2 registration and initiate entity outreach to the owners of these IBRs.
- NERC is planning to hold an ERO-wide webinar on Nov. 13 to explain the next steps in the registration process for these entities, and registration details will be shared in the near future.
- Please see the documentation required to register new Generator Owner (GO) and Generator Operators (GOP) functional entities in ReliabilityFirst (RF) Region.
Standards
- In response to FERC Order No. 901, NERC continues to develop active Reliability Standards projects that address multiple aspects of IBR planning.
- In August, the NERC Board of Trustees invoked Section 321 of the Rules of Procedure to ensure that systemic reliability issues associated with IBRs are addressed in a timely manner and that NERC is responsive to FERC’s Order No. 901 directives.
- To that end, NERC and the Standards Committee hosted a PRC- 029-1 technical conference on Sept. 4–5.
- Three Milestone 2 projects—Project 2020-02 – Modifications to PRC-024 (Generator Ridethrough), Project 2021-04 – Modifications to PRC-0022, and Project 2023-02 – Analysis and Mitigation of BES Inverter-Based Resource Performance Issues, as well as a definition for “Inverter-Based Resources” proposed by Project 2020-06 – Verifications of Models and Data for Generators—were approved by the NERC Board of Trustees on Oct. 8.
Stakeholder Outreach and E-ISAC Engagements
- NERC continued engagement with state and provincial regulators at the NARUC Summer Policy Summit and CAMPUT Annual General Meeting.
- Additionally, the E-ISAC continued to support engagement and outreach through monthly Cyber Security Working Group meetings with the Solar Energy Industries Association, a dedicated clean energy transition session at GridSecCon in October, and a presentation at an upcoming solar energy conference on the importance of cyber security for renewable energy assets.
Legal
- On Aug. 9, 2024, NERC filed a work plan progress update with FERC.
- On Aug. 26, 2024, NERC submitted a compliance filing in response to the order issued by FERC on June 27, 2024 approving revisions to the NERC Rules of Procedures.
- As directed by FERC, the compliance filing clarified the types of IBRs included in the term “generating resources.”