2022 State of Reliability Report on Bulk Power System Performance

The 2022 State of Reliability report serves as a technical assessment of the Bulk Electric System (BES) performance during the year 2021. This report is intended for regulators, policymakers, and industry leaders, providing insights into major reliability risks and performance trends. It outlines the unprecedented challenges faced in 2021, particularly highlighting the extreme cold weather in February that resulted in a significant controlled load shed event in the U.S., marking it as the largest in history. The report details the implications of these events, including the hardships faced by electricity customers and the tragic loss of life. Furthermore, it discusses the analysis conducted by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and NERC, which identified shortcomings in the implementation of prior recommendations aimed at enhancing reliability. The report includes 28 recommendations for improving cold weather preparedness and overall reliability, emphasizing the need for effective risk reduction strategies within the North American bulk power system.