Top Recent NERC Penalties

We compiled the top recent NERC penalties from official NERC filings to help compliance professionals stay ahead. These cases reveal the costly impact of non-compliance and show which NERC PRC standards regulators actively enforce.

Top Recent NERC Penalties

Date	Entity	Violation / Standard	Penalty Amount
Dec 30, 2024	PPL Electric Utilities Corporation (PPL EU)	FAC-003-4 R2	$400,000
Jan 30, 2025	American Electric Power Service Corp.	O&P standards (Settlement Agreement)	$380,000
Apr 10, 2025	MidAmerican Energy Company (MEC)	FAC-009-1 R1	$82,000
Jun 2, 2025	Florida Power & Light Co. (FPL)	FAC-008-5 R6	$120,000
Jun 2, 2025	Cooperative Energy (CoEn)	FAC-008-5 R6	$20,000

What These Penalties Signal for NERC Compliance Teams

These examples highlight why staying current with NERC compliance matters—especially for facility ratings (FAC standards) and system operating plans. Regulators are paying increasing attention to infractions under EOP-011 and PRC-029, and ignoring them could lead to significant financial penalties.

Businesses need to be proactive in ensuring that their paperwork, training, and internal control procedures are in line with the constantly changing NERC PRC standards. Stay ahead of NERC updates—align your FAC, EOP, and PRC standards to avoid costly fines and boost compliance with proactive internal controls. Maintaining preparedness and preventing costly enforcement actions can be greatly aided by internal mock drills, automated monitoring, and periodic audits.

Key Takeaways & Action Points for Compliance Teams

These enforcement actions offer critical guidance if your organization is preparing internal audits, policy reviews, or training programs.

Strengthen Facility Ratings Management (FAC Standards)

• Audit & Verify All Equipment Data: Cross-check nameplate capacity, impedance, voltage ratings, and conductor info.
  
• Maintain a Living Rating File: Keep current documentation for every facility piece and include date- and source-stamped changes.
  
• Periodic Reverification: Reconfirm accuracy before major system changes, load shifts, or after maintenance events.
  
• Use a Robust Audit Trail: Record testing, recalculations, model verification—the stronger your audit trail, the stronger your defense.
  

Enhance Protection System Coordination (PRC Standards)

• PRC-029 Checks: Validate that relay settings and protection schemes communicate and coordinate correctly, especially during outages or fault conditions.
  
• Coordination Studies: Regularly perform updated coordination studies, particularly when modifying relays, equipment, or settings.
  
• Cross-check Vendors: Ensure relay vendor settings match actual system conditions, line configurations, transformer types, etc.
  

Boost Emergency Preparedness & Operating Plans (EOP Standards)

• EOP-011 Readiness: Ensure plans cover all credible contingencies, response roles, communications, and drill procedures.
  
• Regular Emergency Drills: Routine internal and cross-entity drills help reveal the “unknown unknowns.”
  
• Continuous Improvement: After drills or real events, perform root cause analyses and update plans based on lessons learned.
  

Implement Proactive Governance & Internal Controls

• Designate a Compliance Champion: A knowledgeable administrator dedicated to NERC implementation—especially through FDAIC, CIP, PRC, and EOP standards—can sustain momentum.
  
• Automate Monitoring & Alerts: Use CMR integration, asset management systems, or EAM software to flag overdue rating reviews, model mismatches, or coordination conflicts.
  
• Schedule Periodic Internal Audits: At least annually, review critical standards with documented findings, remediation plans, and management oversight.
  
• Stay Informed on NERC Updates: Standards evolve rapidly. Monitor quarterly updates or subscribe to compliance tracking services (more on this below).
  

Sample Corrective Action Program

1. Gap Assessment: Utilize internal/external experts to evaluate compliance risk across FAC, PRC, EOP standards.
   
2. Remediation Timelines: Build multi-tiered milestones (30/60/90 days) with responsible stakeholders.
   
3. Document Everything: Capture evidence of remediation (e.g., updated facility ratings files, revised settings).
   
4. Validation Assays: Schedule and track internal drills or system tests.
   
5. Board-Level Reporting: Elevate progress summaries to senior management to ensure support and resources.
   

Recommended Monitoring Frequency

Task	Frequency
Facility Rating QA/QC	Annually
Protection Coordination Studies	Annually or after major system changes
Emergency Planning Review & Drills	Semi-annually
Compliance Gap Assessment	Quarterly
Standards Update Awareness	As published (monitoring)

Tools & Resources for Compliance

• CMMS / EAM Systems: Track equipment rating documentation, coordinate with maintenance cycles.
  
• Relay Vendor Software: Automate protection coordination settings and export reports.
  
• Emergency Plan Repositories: Shareable cloud-based plans with versioning and access controls.
  
• Compliance Alert Services: Subscription tools like NERC’s Event Analysis, Certrec, or industry newsletters make staying current easier.

FAQs

Q1: What is the most common reason for a NERC violation?
A: Violations often stem from failing to maintain accurate facility ratings, protection system miscoordination, or inadequate emergency operations planning.

Q2: How often are NERC standards updated?
A: NERC regularly updates standards. Compliance teams should monitor NERC compliance updates quarterly or subscribe to alerts from NERC or platforms like Certrec.

Q3: Can small violations lead to large penalties?
A: Yes. Even minor violations, especially if recurring or associated with critical infrastructure, can result in large NERC financial penalties.

Q4: What are PRC-029 and EOP-011?
A: PRC-029 ensures coordination among protection systems, while EOP-011 governs emergency operations planning. Both are essential for NERC compliance.