NERC

North American Electric Reliability Organization

The North American Electric Reliability Organization (NERC) is a not-for-profit, international regulatory authority whose mission is to assure the reliability and security of the bulk power system in North America. NERC is dedicated to effectively and efficiently reducing risks to the reliability and security of the bulk power system. NERC has oversight over the North American bulk power system (BPS).​ The BPS includes the electric generation and transmission network, which provides electricity to approximately 400 million people in contiguous North America.

NERC’s Vision and Structure: The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) certified NERC as the Electric Reliability Organization (ERO) in 2006, following the passage of the Energy Policy Act of 2005.​ NERC is an independent entity that develops and enforces mandatory standards for the reliable operation and planning of the BPS. ​NERC delegates certain functions to the six Regional Entities in North America. Together, they make up the ERO Enterprise. NERC is accountable to the FERC in the United States, and applicable regulatory authorities in Canada. NERC’s vision is a highly reliable and secure North American BPS.​

NERC’s Key Activities: Key activities include:

• Propose, monitor compliance with, and enforce mandatory reliability standards.​
• Conduct near-term and long-term reliability assessments.​
• Maintain situational awareness of events and conditions that may threaten reliability. ​
• Audit owners, operators, and users that perform specified reliability functions.​
• Educate, train, and certify industry personnel.​
• Operate the Electricity Information Sharing and Analysis Center (E-ISAC).