🚨 So You Just Got Nominated: Now What?
A Survival Guide for Small IBR Operators
Did you can get flagged or ‘nominated’ to be NERC compliant? Who can nominate you? What do you do when that happens?
If you’ve recently learned that your solar-plus-storage site is getting flagged under NERC’s new GO-IBR rules, don’t panic—you’re not alone, and no, it’s not a glitch.
Across the U.S., hundreds (maybe thousands) of small to midsize renewable asset owners are getting their first taste of NERC registration love letters. You might be thinking:
“But we’re only 15 MW!”
“Isn’t this just for big utilities?”
“Do I need to buy a control room now?!”
Welcome to the new world of inverter-based compliance, where even small-but-mighty solar arrays and battery banks are now officially on NERC’s radar. And it’s not just about megawatts anymore (used to be that >75MVA promoted you into the NERC club)—it’s about impact, location, and whether your site shows up on a transmission planner’s stress test.
Let’s break this down.
⚡ What Just Happened?
NERC and FERC (you know, the electric reliability bosses) noticed something:
A lot of grid events—unexpected outages, weird frequency blips, cascading voltage dips—were tied to IBRs that weren’t even registered. In response, they lowered the compliance threshold and added two new player slots to the reliability roster:
- GO-IBR: Generator Owner – Inverter-Based Resource
- GOP-IBR: Generator Operator – Inverter-Based Resource
Suddenly, your not-so-huge solar project could be considered material to reliability. That means compliance is no longer optional—it’s your new best friend.
đź‘€ Am I Really In Scope?
Probably, yes. Here are some red flags:
- You interconnect at 60 kV or above
- You’ve got ≥20 MVA aggregated capacity
- You operate storage, solar, or hybrids that provide grid support
- A planner or transmission operator nominated you (aka “tag, you’re it”)
- You thought you were exempt and now… you’re not
đź“‹ So… What Now?
Step 1: Breathe
Yes, the acronym avalanche (PRC-028, EOP-004, MOD-032) is intense. But you don’t need to learn them overnight.
Step 2: Find Out Your Role
Are you the Generator Owner (GO)? Probably.
Are you also the Generator Operator (GOP)? Maybe.
If you don’t have a 24/7 control room, consider outsourcing this to a firm that does.
Step 3: Start Assembling Your Toolkit
You’ll need:
- A compliance folder (digital or literal)
- Plant diagrams, inverter specs, and SCADA screenshots
- A basic understanding of reliability standards
- Contact info for your NERC Region’s registration team
- Someone who knows what PRC-024 actually means (or knows someone who does)
🧠Need Help? You’re Not Alone
If you’re a small shop without a compliance team, this is the part where things get real. The good news? There’s a growing bench of folks who’ve been through this and can help.
Check out companies like:
- NAES – Compliance and operations for IBRs
- SYSO Technologies – SCADA, telemetry, and full NERC prep
- GridSME, TRC, EPE, Radian Generation – All known to support smaller IBR operators with audits, training, and technical filings
Whether you want to DIY your NERC plan or call in reinforcements, you’ve got options.
🔍 Want the Full Game Plan?
We’ve pulled together what small asset owners need to know—plus vetted vendor info, modeling requirements, and step-by-step action items—in our brand-new research report:
“Action Plan for Small IBR Asset Owners Under NERC’s GO-IBR Reforms”
đź“„ By the GO-IBR.com Research Team
It’s available now under your Account section at www.go-ibr.com.
BTW, who can nominate you?
Planning Coordinator Nomination: A Planning Coordinator can nominate an IBR for registration if they determine it is material to grid reliability.
Transmission Operator Nomination: A Transmission Operator can also nominate or “flag” an IBR for registration if its performance is considered critical to system reliability.
Self-Identification: Owners of IBR assets may be required to proactively assess and declare whether they fall under the new GO-IBR or GOP-IBR categories.
