May 15, 2018
By Electronic Delivery
Honorable Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 888 First Street, NE
Washington, DC 20426
Re: New York Independent System Operator, Inc.’s Compliance Filing; Docket No.
RM16-6-000, ER18-___-000
Dear Ms. Bose:
In compliance with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (“Commission’s”)
Order No. 842,1 the New York Independent System Operator, Inc. (“NYISO”) respectfully
submits revisions to its Large Facility Interconnection Procedures (“LFIP”) and Large
Generation Interconnection Agreement (“LGIA”) set forth in Attachment X of its Open Access
Transmission Tariff (“OATT”) and its Small Generator Interconnection Procedures (“SGIP”)
and Small Generator Interconnection Agreement (“SGIA”) set forth in Attachment Z of its
OATT.2
In Order No. 842, the Commission revised its pro forma Large Generator Interconnection Procedures (“LGIP”), LGIA, SGIP, and SGIA to establish requirements regarding primary
frequency response for newly interconnecting generating facilities.3 The NYISO proposes to
revise its LFIP and LGIA and its SGIP and SGIA to incorporate the revisions, with a limited
number of independent entity variations described below. The proposed variations conform the
revisions in Order No. 842 with the terminology and procedures of the NYISO OATT previously accepted by the Commission.
The NYISO respectfully requests that the revisions become effective on May 15, 2018, as described in Part V below. The NYISO submits that with this compliance filing it fully complies with the requirements set forth in Order No. 842. The NYISO reviewed the proposed revisions with its stakeholders and did not receive any objections.
1 Essential Reliability Services and the Evolving Bulk-Power System—Primary Frequency Response, Order No. 842, 83 Fed. Reg. 9636 (Mar. 6, 2018), 162 FERC ¶ 61,128 (2018) (“Order No. 842”).
2 Capitalized terms that are not otherwise defined in this filing shall have the meaning specified in
Attachment Z of the NYISO OATT, and if not defined therein, in Attachment X of the NYISO OATT and Section 1 of the NYISO OATT.
3 Order No. 842 at P 1.
Honorable Kimberly D. Bose May 15, 2018
Page 2
I.Documents Submitted
The NYISO submits the following documents with this filing letter:
1.A clean version of the proposed revisions to the NYISO’s OATT (“Attachment
I”); and
2.A blacklined version of the proposed revisions to the NYISO’s OATT
(“Attachment II”).
II.Communications
All communications, pleadings and order with respect to this proceeding should be sent
to the following individuals:
Robert E. Fernandez, General Counsel
Karen Georgenson Gach, Deputy General Counsel
Raymond Stalter, Director of Regulatory Affairs
*Sara B. Keegan, Senior Attorney
New York Independent System Operator, Inc.
10 Krey Boulevard
Rensselaer, NY 12144 rfernandez@nyiso.com kgach@nyiso.com
rstalter@nyiso.com
skeegan@nyiso.com
*Designated to receive service.
III.Background
*Ted J. Murphy
Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP 2200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20037
tmurphy@huntonak.com
*Michael J. Messonnier, Jr. Sevren R. Gourley
Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP 951 East Byrd Street
Richmond, VA 23219
mmessonnier@huntonak.com sgourley@huntonak.com
In its Order Nos. 2003 and 2006,4 the Commission established pro forma interconnection
procedures and agreements to set forth the terms and conditions under which public utilities must
provide interconnection services to Large Generating Facilities (of more than 20 MW) and Small
Generating Facilities (of no more than 20 MW). The pro forma interconnection procedures and
4 Standardization of Generator Interconnection Agreements and Procedures, Order No. 2003, FERC Stats.
& Regs. 31,146 (2003) (“Order No. 2003”), order on reh’g, Order No. 2003-A, FERC Stats. & Regs. 31,160 (2004),
order on reh'g, Order No. 2003-B, FERC Stats. & Regs. 31,171 (2004), order on reh’g, Order No. 2003-C, FERC
Stats. & Regs. 131,190 (2005), affirmed sub nom. Nat’I Ass’n of Regulatory Util. Com’rs v. FERC, 475 F.3d 1277
(D.C. Cir. 2007); Standardization of Small Generator Interconnection Agreements and Procedures, Order No. 2006,
70 Fed. Reg. 34190 (June 13, 2005), 111 FERC ¶ 161,220 (2005) (“Order No. 2006”), order on reh'g, Order No. 2006-A, 113 FERC ¶ 61,195, 70 Fed. Reg. 71760 (Nov. 30, 2005).
Honorable Kimberly D. Bose May 15, 2018
Page 3
agreements have since been revised by the Commission in various proceedings.5 In compliance with these orders, the NYISO incorporated the Commission’s interconnection procedures and agreements into its OATT, with certain variations that were accepted by the Commission under the “independent entity variation” standard.6
On February 15, 2018, the Commission issued Order No. 842 to amend its pro forma interconnection procedures and agreements to require newly interconnecting large and small generating facilities, both synchronous and non-synchronous, to install, maintain, and operate equipment capable of providing primary frequency response as a condition of interconnection.7 The Commission directed each public utility transmission provider to submit a compliance filing demonstrating that it meets the requirements of Order No. 842.8
IV. Compliance Revisions
The NYISO proposes revisions to its interconnection procedures and agreements in
Attachments X and Z of its OATT to adopt the Commission’s revisions to its pro forma
interconnection procedures and agreements set forth in Order No. 842 with a limited number of variations described below.
In Order No. 842, the Commission provided that RTOs/ISOs may propose independent entity variations from its pro forma provisions.9 In addition, the Commission provided that RTOs/ISOs may demonstrate that previously-approved variations continue to be permissible under the independent entity variation standard.10
5 E.g., Small Generator Interconnection Agreements and Procedures, Order No. 792, 145 FERC ¶ 61,159 (2013), clarifying, Order No. 792-Am 146 FERC ¶ 61,214 (2014); Reactive Power Requirements for Non-
Synchronous Generation, Order No. 827, FERC Stats. & Regs. ¶ 31,385 (2016), 155 FERC ¶ 61,277 (2016);
Requirements for Frequency and Voltage Ride Through Capability of Small Generating facilities, Order No. 828, 156 FERC ¶ 61,062 (2016).
6 See, e.g., New York Independent System Operator, Inc. and New York Transmission Owners, Order
Conditionally Accepting Large Generator Interconnection Procedures and Large Generator Interconnection
Agreement, 108 FERC ¶ 61,159 (2004) (accepting compliance filings and directing certain changes); New York
Independent System Operator, Inc. and New York Transmission Owners, Letter Order, Docket No. ER04-449-004
(2005); New York Independent System Operator, Inc. and New York Transmission Owners, Order on Compliance
Filing, 149 FERC ¶ 61,209, (2014); New York Independent System Operator, Inc. and New York Transmission
Owners, Order on Small Generator Interconnection Compliance Filing, 118 FERC ¶ 61,130 (2007) (accepting
compliance filing in part and directing certain changes); New York Independent System Operator, Inc. and New York
Transmission Owners, Order Granting Rehearing in Part and Denying Rehearing in Part and Accepting Compliance
Filing, 119 FERC ¶ 61,333 (2007) (granting in part and denying in part request for rehearing, clarifying aspects of
February 2007 order, and accepting compliance filing in part and directing certain changes); New York Independent
System Operator, Inc. and New York Transmission Owners, Letter Order, Docket Nos. ER06-311-004 and ER06-
311-005 (March 3, 2008).
7 Order No. 842 at P 33.
8 Id. at P 253.
9 Id. at PP 234.
10 Id. at P 254.
Honorable Kimberly D. Bose May 15, 2018
Page 4
The Commission has accepted previous variations to the NYISO’s interconnection
procedures pursuant to its independent entity variation standard.11 The independent entity
variation standard provides ISOs/RTOs with flexibility in adopting the Commission’s pro forma
language because ISOs/RTOs have different operating characteristics, depending on their
geographic size and location, and are less likely to act in an unduly discriminatory manner than
non-independent transmission providers.12 The Commission has explained that under this
standard, “the Commission will review the proposed variations to ensure they do not provide an
unwarranted opportunity for undue discrimination or produce an interconnection process that is
unjust and unreasonable.”13 It has recognized that where changes to interconnection procedures
“are clarifying and/or ministerial in nature and/or NYISO has supplied sufficient justification,”
such modifications are acceptable under the independent entity variation standard.14 In addition,
the Commission has recognized that the independent entity variation standard “is more flexible
than the ‘consistent with or superior to’ standard and the regional differences standard.”15
The independent entity variations proposed in this compliance filing conform the
revisions in Order No. 842 with the terminology and procedures of the NYISO OATT previously accepted by the Commission. For the reasons explained below, these proposed variations from the Commission’s pro forma revisions are fully justified under the Commission’s independent entity variation standard.
A.Independent Entity Variation Required for Consistent Application of
Reliability Standards
In Order No. 842, the Commission established uniform minimum operating requirements
for droop, deadband, and timely and sustained primary frequency response while allowing for
the application of future NERC Reliability Standards that include equivalent or more stringent
operating requirements.16 The NYISO proposes to revise these operating requirements to allow
for the possibility of future, more stringent reliability standards not only from the North America
Reliability Corporation (“NERC”), as proposed in the order, but also from the other reliability
councils to which New York generation facilities are subject and for the local Transmission
District in which the facility is directly interconnected. Specifically, the NYISO proposes to
replace the pro forma term “NERC Reliability Standards” with the term “Applicable Reliability
Standards,” which is defined in the NYISO’s LGIA and SGIA.17 The term “Applicable
Reliability Standards” includes NERC Reliability Standards, as well as the requirements and
guidelines established by the Northeast Power Coordinating Council (“NPCC”), the New York
State Reliability Council (“NYSRC”), and the local Transmission District in which the
11 See, e.g., New York Independent System Operator, Inc., 135 FERC ¶ 51,014 (2011); New York Independent System Operator, Inc., 124 FERC ¶ 61,238 (2008).
12 New York Independent System Operator, Inc., 108 FERC ¶ 61,159 at P 4 (2004); Order No. 2003 at P
827.
13 New York Independent System Operator, Inc., 124 FERC ¶ 61,238 at P 17 (2008).
14 Id. at PP 17-18.
15 Order No. 2003 at P 26.
16 Order No. 842 at P 70.
17 Specifically, NYISO proposes this revision in Sections 9.5.5, 9.5.5.1, and 9.5.5.2 of its LGIA and Sections 1.8.3, 1.8.3.1, and 1.8.3.2 of its SGIA.
Honorable Kimberly D. Bose May 15, 2018
Page 5
Interconnection Customer’s facility is directly interconnected.
The NYISO’s proposed variation from the Commission’s pro forma language would
align the new primary frequency response requirements with the existing requirements of the
LGIA and SGIA. For example, Section 9.1 of the NYISO’s LGIA already requires that each
party “comply with Applicable Laws and Regulations and Applicable Reliability Standards.”18
In addition, the NYISO’s proposed variation from the Commission’s pro forma language is consistent with the Federal Power Act, which permits the State of New York to “establish rules that result in greater reliability within that State, as long as such action does not result in lesser reliability outside the State than that provided by the reliability standards” approved by the Commission.19 Allowing for the application of future “Applicable Reliability Standards,” in addition to the Commission’s uniform minimum operating requirements, will result in the same or greater reliability than simply the application of future “NERC Reliability Standards” without resulting in lesser reliability outside of the State of New York.
B.Independent Entity Variation with Respect to the Term “Transmission
Provider”
Both the NYISO and the New York Transmission Owners (“NYTOs”) have
responsibilities in the interconnection process in New York that are assigned to the
“Transmission Provider” in the Commission’s pro forma LGIA and SGIA. The Commission has
previously accepted the NYISO’s proposed revisions to the pro forma term “Transmission
Provider” that allocate the Transmission Provider’s responsibilities between the NYISO and the
NYTOs in a manner that reflects their roles in interconnection and system operations in New
York.20
Consistent with the existing allocation of the Transmission Provider’s responsibilities in
the NYISO’s LGIA and SGIA, the NYISO proposes to replace the term “Transmission Provider”
as used in the Commission’s revisions in Order No. 842 with the terms “NYISO,” “NYISO and
the Connecting Transmission Owner,” and “NYISO and/or the Connecting Transmission
Owner,” as applicable, to clarify the respective roles of the NYISO and the Connecting
Transmission Owners as they relate to the generating facility’s provision of primary frequency
response.21
18 NYISO LGIA, OATT § 30.14, App’x 3, Art. 9.1. Relatedly, Section 3.4.4 of NYISO’s SGIA addresses
disconnection of facilities as may be required under “Applicable Reliability Standards.” NYISO SGIA, OATT §
32.5, App’x 7, Art. 3.4.4.
19 16 U.S.C. § 824o(i)(3).
20 See, e.g., New York Independent System Operator, Inc. and New York Transmission Owners, Order
Granting Rehearing in Part and Denying Rehearing in Part and Accepting Compliance Filing, 119 FERC ¶ 61,333
(2007) at P 34 (accepting compliance revisions filed by NYISO and NYTOs on March 22, 2007, in the Order No.
2006 proceeding, including the split of responsibilities between the NYISO and NYTO in the SGIP and SGIA).
21 Specifically, the NYISO proposes this revision in Sections 9.5.5, 9.5.5.1, and 9.5.5.4 of its LGIA and Sections 1.8.3, 1.8.3.1 and 1.8.3.4 of its SGIA.
Honorable Kimberly D. Bose May 15, 2018
Page 6
C.Independent Entity Variation with Respect to the Term “Interconnection
Customer”
The term “Developer,” as used in the NYISO’s Commission-approved LGIA,22 is a
tariff-defined term referring to a project developer for a Large Facility (versus a Small
Generating Facility). The NYISO uses the term “Developer” instead of “Interconnection
Customer” throughout its LFIP and LGIA. To avoid confusion and for consistency with the
other provisions in the LGIA and LFIP not subject to revision under Order No. 842, the NYISO proposes to continue to use the term “Developer” in place of “Interconnection Customer” in new Sections 9.5.5 through 9.5.5.4 of the LGIA.
D.Independent Entity Variation with Respect to the Term “Transmission
System”
The term “New York State Transmission System” as used in the NYISO’s Commission-
approved LGIA and SGIA is a tariff-defined term that defines the scope of the New York State
electric transmission system that is subject to the NYISO’s interconnection procedures.23 The
NYISO uses the term “New York State Transmission System” instead of “Transmission System”
throughout NYISO’s interconnection procedures and agreements. To avoid confusion and for
consistency with the other provisions in the NYISO’s LGIA and SGIA not subject to revision
under Order No. 842, the NYISO proposes to continue to use the term “New York State
Transmission System” in place of “Transmission System” in its proposed revisions to the LGIA and SGIA.24
E.Additional Miscellaneous Variations
The NYISO proposes a few additional minor clarifying or ministerial variations in
adopting the Commission’s language. First, consistent with the NYISO’s LGIA and SGIA, the NYISO has substituted the word “Article” for the word “Section” in the provisions added in response to Order No. 842. In addition, the NYISO has adjusted heading numbers to maintain consistency and coherence within its existing LGIA and SGIA.
Second, the NYISO identified a missing word in the fourth sentence of both Section 9.6.4 of the Commission’s pro forma LGIA and Section 1.8.4 of its pro forma SGIA. The NYISO proposes to insert the word “on” in the corresponding provisions in Section 9.5.5 of NYISO’s LGIA and in Section 1.8.3 of NYISO’s SGIA.
22 New York Independent System Operator, Inc., 108 FERC ¶ 61,159 at PP 17-19 (2004).
23 The NYISO’s LGIA and SGIA define “New York State Transmission System” as the “entire New York
State electric transmission system, which includes (i) the Transmission Facilities under ISO Operational Control; (ii)
the Transmission Facilities Requiring ISO Notification; and (iii) all remaining transmission facilities within the New
York Control Area.” NYISO LGIA, OATT § 30.14, App’x 3, Art. 1; NYISO SGIP, OATT §32.5, App’x 1.
24 Specifically, the NYISO proposes this variation in Sections 9.5.5, 9.5.5.1, and 9.5.5.4 of NYISO’s LGIA and Sections 1.8.3, 1.8.3.1, and 1.8.3.4 of NYISO’s SGIA.
Honorable Kimberly D. Bose May 15, 2018
Page 7
Third, the Commission directed public utility transmission providers to remove certain language from Section 9.6.2.1 of its pro forma LGIA that is not present in the corresponding Section 9.5.4 of the NYISO’s Commission-approved LGIA as a result of a previously accepted variation. Accordingly, the NYISO proposes to revise the portion of Section 9.5.4 that still reflects the Commission’s pro forma language.
The Commission directed public utility transmission providers to include certain prompts in the Interconnection Request form in the LGIP for newly interconnecting customers to provide primary frequency response operating range information for proposed electric storage resources. The NYISO previously modified its Interconnection Request form in its LFIP including inserting electric storage related questions. Accordingly, the NYISO proposes to locate the prompts for
primary frequency response operating information in the electric storage resources portion of its Interconnection Request form.
Finally, the NYISO proposes to add “%” at the end of the prompts in its Interconnection Request forms in its LFIP and SGIP that request Minimum State of Charge and Maximum State of Charge for the proposed energy storage resource. This variation is meant to clarify the type of data newly interconnecting customers must provide and is consistent with the Commission’s explanation of an electric storage resource’s State of Charge in Order No. 841.25
V.Effective Date
The Commission directed that its pro forma revisions will apply to all newly
interconnecting large and small generating facilities that execute or request the unexecuted filing
of an LGIA or SGIA on or after May 15, 2018, and existing large and small generating facilities
that take any action that requires the submission of a new interconnection request that results in
the filing of an executed or unexecuted interconnection agreement on or after May 15, 2018.26
Accordingly, the NYISO respectfully requests that its tariff revisions become effective on May
15, 2018.
VI.Service
The NYISO will send an electronic link to this filing to the official representative of each
party to this proceeding, to the official representative of each of its customers, to each participant
on its stakeholder committees, to the New York Public Service Commission, and to the New
Jersey Board of Public Utilities. In addition, a complete copy of the documents included with
this filing will be posted on the NYISO’s website at www.nyiso.com.
25 Electric Storage Participation in Markets Operated by Regional Transmission Organizations and
Independent System Operators, 162 FERC ¶ 61, 127 at P 208 (2018) (“Order No. 841”) (“State of Charge represents the amount of energy stored in proportion to the limit on the amount of energy that can be stored, typically
expressed as a percentage.”).
26 Order No. 842 at P 272.
Honorable Kimberly D. Bose May 15, 2018
Page 8
VII. Conclusion
Wherefore, the NYISO respectfully requests that the Commission accept this compliance
filing.
Respectfully submitted,
/s/ Sara B. Keegan
Sara B. Keegan
New York Independent System Operator, Inc.
10 Krey Boulevard
Rensselaer, NY 12144
skeegan@nyiso.com
Counsel for the New York Independent System Operator, Inc.
cc:Anna Cochrane
James Danly
Jette Gebhart
Kurt Longo
David Morenoff
Daniel Nowak
Larry Parkinson
J. Arnold Quinn
Douglas Roe
Kathleen Schnorf Gary Will
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that I have this day served the foregoing document upon each person
designated on the official service list compiled by the Secretary in this proceeding in accordance
with the requirements of Rule 2010 of the Rules of Practice and Procedure, 18 C.F.R. §
385.2010.
Dated at Rensselaer, NY this 15th day of May 2018.
By:/s/ John C. Cutting
John C. Cutting
New York Independent System Operator, Inc.
10 Krey Blvd.
Rensselaer, NY 12144 (518) 356-7521