NIST Releases Framework and Roadmap for Smart Grid Interoperability Standards 1.0

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has released the Framework and Roadmap for Smart Grid Interoperability Standards 1.0.  The NIST sees an urgent need to establish standards for the smart grid because without standards, there is the potential for technologies developed or implemented with sizable public and private investments to become obsolete prematurely or to be implemented without ensuring security. The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA) designated development of a Smart Grid as a national policy goal and specifically said that the interoperability framework should be “flexible, uniform, and technology neutral” while at the same time encouraging new, innovative smart grid technologies.

The Framework and Roadmap for Smart Grid Interoperability Standards 1.0 describes a conceptual reference model for the smart grid, identifies existing standards that are applicable to the development of the smart grid, identifies high-priority gaps for which new or revised standards are necessary, outlines action plans with timelines and standards organizations for addressing these gaps, and addresses smart grid cybersecurity.

NIST chose to focus initially on standards identified by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) plus additional areas identified by NIST. The priority areas are:

• Demand Response and Consumer Energy Efficiency
• Wide-Area Situational Awareness
• Energy Storage
• Electric Transportation
• Advanced Metering Infrastructure
• Distribution Grid Management
• Cyber Security
• Network Communications

For each priority area, Priority Action Plans (PAP) and targets for completion have been identified.  One, the smart meter upgradeability standard, has already been completed.

1. Common specification for price and product definition (early 2010)
2. Common scheduling mechanism for energy transactions (early 2010)
3. Common information model for distribution grid management (year-end 2010)
4. Standard demand response signals (early 2010)
5. Standards for energy use information (mid 2010)
6. DNP3 Mapping to IEC 61850 Objects (2010)3
7. Harmonization of IEEE C37.118 with IEC 61850 and precision time synchronization (mid 2010)
8. Transmission and distribution power systems models mapping (year-end 2010)
9. Guidelines for use of IP protocol suite in the Smart Grid (mid 2010)
10. Guidelines for use of wireless communications in the Smart Grid (mid 2010)
11. Energy storage interconnection guidelines (mid 2010)
12. Interoperability standards to support plug-in electric vehicles (year-end 2010)
13. Standard meter data profiles (year-end 2010)
14. Harmonize power line carrier standards for appliance communications in the home (year-end 2010)
15. Cyber Security

The reference model, standards, gaps and action plans in the Framework are designed to create an initial foundation for a secure, interoperable smart grid and were achieved through participatory workshops and webinars, a formal public review process, and the involvement of more than 20 standards organizations.

The second phase of the NIST plan involves an ongoing organization and consensus process that is being formalized under a new virtual organization, the Smart Grid Interoperability Panel (SGIP). The SGIP is a public-private partnership that provides a more permanent organizational structure to support the continuing evolution of the framework and is open to international participation. SGIP membership already includes over 500 organizations.  The objective is to create a robust standards process that supports smart grid innovation for at least the next two decades.