To determine the applicable rules for a generator interconnection request, several things must be known about the generator: the type of generator, number of units, its size (MVA), location, the needed interconnection voltage, and how the owner plans to operate it. Arkansas Electric Cooperative Corporation (AECC) utilizes the interconnection processes outlined by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and the Arkansas Public Service Commission (APSC) to evaluate generation interconnection requests. To assist the requestor in determining which rules apply, the following information is provided.
Many of the documents referred to in the following sections are in the Adobe Acrobat PDF format, which can be viewed using Adobe’s free PDF Reader.
Generators 100 Kilowatts or Less (Photovoltaic, Small Wind, etc.)
If the facility is 100 kW or less the APSC Net Metering Rules may be of interest. These can be found at the APSC Website.
Small Generators Less than 20 Megawatts (Single or Multiple Units) Not under Net Meter Rules
Facilities with a single unit or multiple units up to 20 megawatts (MW) which do not qualify under the Net Metering rules and are planned to operate in parallel with AECC systems will be processed using the FERC Small Gen Rules. These rules can be found on FERC.gov’s page on Small Generator Interconnection. Associated with the rules is a press release from FERC, which may be of interest. The press release can be found on FERC.gov’s page on Generator Interconnection.
Large Generators 20 Megawatts or Higher
Facilities with a single unit or multiple units totaling 20 MW or more and planned to operate in parallel with AECC systems will be processed under the FERC Large Generator Rules (Order 2003-A). These rules can be found on FERC.gov’s page on Large Generator Interconnection. Facilities greater than 20 MW may be subject to the FERC-approved mandatory NERC Reliability Standards applicable to Generator Owners and Generator Operators as defined by NERC, located on the NERC Website.
Co-Generation Qualifying Facility APSC
Co-Generation Rules apply for Co-Generation facilities. The rules can be found on APSC’s page on Co-Generation Rules. To qualify under the Co-Generation rules the facility has to meet the definition(s) as defined in the APSC’s Co-Generation Rules. It should be noted that Co-Generation units greater than 20 MW may be subject to the FERC-approved mandatory NERC Reliability Standards applicable to Generator Owners and Generator Operators as defined by NERC. These standards can be found on the NERC Website. AECC will use the FERC generator interconnection rules to process Co-Generation requests. Units under 20 MW will be subject to the FERC Small Generator Rules (Order 2006) and units 20 MW and larger will be subject to the FERC Large Generator Rules (Order 2003-A). The small generator rules can be found on FERC.gov’s page on Small Generator Interconnection and the large generator rules can be found on FERC.gov’s page on Large Generator Interconnection.