Midwest Reliability Organization (MRO) is pleased to announce the release of its 2022 Regional Winter Assessment (2022 RWA). The 2022 RWA reflects MRO’s independent assessment of the upcoming winter season to identify challenges and potential reliability risks to the reliable and secure operations of the bulk power system within MRO’s regional footprint. This assessment provides an evaluation of resources and transmission system adequacy necessary to meet projected winter peak demands in December 2022 through February 2023, as well as highlights system trends and emerging risks. See the 2022 RWA Infographic for a high-level summary.
MRO’s 2022 RWA compliments NERC’s 2022 Winter Reliability Assessment, which provides an evaluation of resource and transmission system adequacy necessary to meet projected winter peak demands across all of North America. MRO’s 2022 RWA focuses on the bulk power system in MRO’s regional footprint, and further evaluates historical performance to identify reliability concerns and trends that might impact reliability for the upcoming winter season. MRO’s seasonal assessments provide valuable input to MRO’s Regional Risk Assessment that is conducted each year in the fourth quarter.
The 2022 RWA finds that although anticipated resources are sufficient to meet normal winter demand, extreme winter peak loads coupled with planned and forced generation outages, could result in energy shortfalls across the region. Additionally, potential coal delivery issues could be an emerging reliability concern for the upcoming winter as power plants are experiencing lower coal stock. Historical trends indicate that conventional generation availability, particularly steam turbine, combined cycle gas and simple cycle gas plants, is most challenging during winter months and should remain an area of focus. The report recommends that having a mechanism in place to prevent or delay retirement of generators needed for reliability, including the management of energy shortfall, would temporarily mitigate potential risks to the bulk power system until new reliable resources are available.
The electric power industry must address how to provide adequate energy supply to consumers during times of extreme cold weather and ensure power plants are winterized properly. Continued monitoring of fuel supply availability during extreme cold weather is also critical to maintaining reliability of the regional bulk power system during the 2022 winter season.
MRO will host a webinar on the 2022 RWA key findings on December 15, 2022. You can register for this event here.
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Midwest Reliability Organization (MRO) is a non-profit organization dedicated to ensuring the reliability and security of the bulk power system in the central region of North America, including parts of both the United States and Canada. MRO is one of six regional entities in North America operating under authority from regulators in the United States through a delegation agreement with the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) and in Canada under similar arrangements. The primary focus of MRO is developing and ensuring compliance with reliability standards and assessing the grid’s ability to meet the demands for electricity.