Grid Glossary

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Federal Power Act

A United States law primarily regulating the interstate transmission and sale of electricity and the development of hydroelectric power. It was responsible for creating the body now known as FERC. It was created in 1920 and has been amended several times since. 

Firming requirements

Measures taken to ensure backup power, particularly of renewable energy, such as solar and wind generators. These requirements may require battery storage, ancillary services, or backup generation, such as an added gas plant to produce energy when a solar or wind plant does not.

Frequency

Electricity is supplied to homes and businesses in the United States in the form of alternating current, and frequency is the rate at which an alternating current changes direction, as measured in hertz (Hz). Across the power grid there is a consistent frequency which in the United States is 60 Hz. 

Frequency regulation or response

The ability of the grid to react to a change in

the frequency to bring it back to the normal operating frequency, which is 60 Hz in the United States

  • Inertial response refers to the injection of stored energy, such as battery energy, into the electricity grid to slow down a decline in frequency. 
  • Primary frequency response – The first line of defense against frequency fluctuations that could destabilize the grid. It takes the form of immediate, automatic adjustments in power output by generators and loads in response to frequency deviations in the electric grid.
  • Fast frequency response consists of the combined inertial response and primary frequency response. It injects energy in the seconds immediately following a disturbance to slow frequency decline and establishes the minimum frequency (called the nadir).
  • Secondary frequency response works on a slightly longer time frame than primary frequency response, on the order of 5-15 minutes. It maintains grid frequency and allows for scheduled energy transfers between balancing authorities, which include utilities, regional transmission operators, and other grid management entities.
Thermal source

A type of power station in which the heat energy generated from various fuel sources (e.g., coal, natural gas, nuclear fuel, etc.) is converted to electrical energy.

Transfer capacity

The maximum amount of electrical power that can be reliably moved from one geographic region of the power grid to another, essentially indicating the ability of the transmission lines connecting those regions to transport electricity between them without causing instability or exceeding safety limits. It’s a crucial concept for ensuring the safe and efficient operation of the power system, particularly in the context of electricity markets and grid planning.

Transformers

Equipment used to increase and decrease voltages at grid interfaces.

Transmission

The process (and infrastructure) of moving large amounts of electrical power over long distances from where it is generated, like a power plant, to substations closer to consumers.

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