To recommend approval of NPRR432 as recommended by PRS in the 1/19/12 PRS Report, as amended by the 2/1/12 TIEC-NRG Texas LLC comments and as revised by TAC; and to refer to PRS the issue of the appropriate asset depreciation schedule to apply to the capital contribution repayment obligation.
To recommend approval of NPRR432 as amended by the 1/6/12 ERCOT comments and as revised by PRS and to direct that NPRR432 return to the 1/19/12 PRS meeting for consideration.
To table NPRR432 until the 1/9/12 Special PRS meeting.
Passed
Background
Status:
Approved
Date Posted:
Dec 2, 2011
Sponsor:
ERCOT
Urgent:
Yes
Sections:
6.5.1.1
Description:
This Nodal Protocol Revision Request (NPRR) institutes parameters governing ERCOT’s utilization of emergency authority under Section 6.5.1.1 when ERCOT seeks to deploy Resources to maintain ERCOT System reliability when Emergency Conditions are anticipated. The NPRR provides a process for ERCOT to procure and deploy Resources that may be used to alleviate anticipated Emergency Conditions in a manner not otherwise delineated in the Protocols and Operating Guides, and requires that such procurements be made only upon approval of the ERCOT Board.
In addition to establishing procedural steps for such procurements, the NPRR includes steps to minimize impacts on the broader market. These steps include prohibiting such Resources from being offered into the Day-Ahead Market (DAM) or used solely to reduce local congestion. The proposed market protections also include steps to ensure that the Resources deployed pursuant to this NPRR would be among the last in line for economic Dispatch, so as not to displace Resources that are On-Line and offering into the market.
Reason:
Due to the extraordinary temperatures and excessive drought conditions during Summer 2011, ERCOT executed short-term contracts with two generation owners to return "mothballed" units to service in order to prevent an imminent Emergency Condition. ERCOT performed these actions under Section 6.5.1.1, but structured the short-term contracts to match the methodology used for Reliability Must-Run (RMR) Service. This NPRR prescribes a specific and transparent process when ERCOT seeks to take actions similar to those taken in the Summer 2011. The NPRR preserves ERCOT’s authority to maintain reliability in Emergency Conditions, but establishes limits on how ERCOT may procure and deploy certain Resources in such circumstances. The NPRR provides the market with greater transparency regarding ERCOT’s exercise of its authority to procure and deploy Resources to alleviate an anticipated Emergency Condition, and institutionalizes protections that will limit the impact of such deployments on market prices during times of scarcity.