The North American Electric Reliability Corp. released its 2021 State of Reliability report on Aug. 17, which found that the North American bulk power system faced numerous challenges in 2020, including extreme weather, cyber and physical threats and a rapidly changing generation resource mix, all within the context of a global pandemic. The report looks at past performance, and found that the grid continued to perform well, while highlighting key concerns for managing an evolving system, including energy adequacy, sensitivities to weather events and a surge in cyber security attacks.
“Key indicators show that mitigation efforts put in place for critical risks are effectively being addressed,” says John Moura, NERC’s director of reliability assessment and performance analysis. “However, the unprecedented stressors in 2020 challenged the system and showed us where the weak links are. It’s clear that the resource and energy adequacy, as well as the increasing exposure to extreme weather conditions, is a priority issue for the industry.”
