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July 28, 1998 (202) 456-7010
YEAR 2000 COUNCIL KICKS OFF
"NATIONAL CAMPAIGN FOR YEAR 2000 SOLUTIONS"
BY FOCUSING ON CHALLENGES FACING ELECTRIC POWER INDUSTRY
John Koskinen, Chair of the President's Council on Year 2000 Conversion, joined by Elizabeth Moler,
Acting Secretary of Energy, and Michehl Gent, President of the North American Electric Reliability
Council, today kicked off the Council's "National Campaign for Year 2000 Solutions" at a National
Press Club event focused on the year 2000 challenges facing the electric power industry.
The National Campaign for Year 2000 Solutions will promote public and private sector action on the
year 2000 computer problem (Y2K) in key areas such as electric power, and foster information-sharing
across organizations about Y2K solutions in the United States and around the world. The campaign will
support the establishment of close working relationships between Federal agencies and key industry
groups, State and local governments, and other important organizations. Its goal is to help maximize
continuity in business and government operations and thereby limit disruptions to the American public
resulting from the transition to the year 2000.
"President Clinton has said that the American people have a right to expect uninterrupted service from
their Government, and we are working to make sure that happens on the Federal level," Koskinen
said. "But we are also encouraging those in the private sector, those at the State and local level, and
our international partners to ensure that their critical systems are ready for the new millennium."
The Council is working through its more than 30 agency working groups, which cover sectors ranging
from telecommunications to transportation, to promote public and private sector action on the problem.
Agencies are reaching out to organizations in their policy areas, not only to prod them to act on Y2K,
but to encourage them to share information with each other on common experiences and best practices
in dealing with the problem, and with the public on their overall progress.
The Council's electric power working group, chaired by the Department of Energy (DOE), is focused on
the year 2000 challenges facing electric utility companies. DOE has asked the North American Electric
Reliability Council (NERC), a leading industry group representing the 10 regional electric reliability
councils responsible for promoting the reliability of the electricity supply for the United States, Canada,
and part of Mexico, to conduct a comprehensive assessment of the electric power industry's Y2K
preparedness.
"Electric power is perhaps the most important part of our infrastructure, and widespread year
2000-related failures in this area could create serious disruptions in services the American people
depend upon," said Moler. "That's why we are committed to doing everything we can to work with
industry groups like NERC in cooperative efforts to ensure that power companies are preparing for
Y2K today, not tomorrow."
At DOE's request, NERC has assumed a leadership role in helping to prepare electricity production
and delivery systems in the United States for the transition to the year 2000. With the help of the
regional reliability councils, NERC is surveying the Y2K preparedness of the Nation's 300 largest
utility companies and has developed a three-phase Y2K program that includes: regular status reports to
DOE on progress within the industry, the coordination of industry-wide contingency planning efforts,
and the development of a "master checklist" with information about the year 2000 compliance of
common equipment components and systems within the industry as well as best practices and solutions.
"Electric utility companies have a lot of information to share with one another about their efforts, and
we want to help them do that," said Gent. "It makes no sense for these organizations, many of whom
are working to ensure the compliance of common systems and equipment, to be reinventing the wheel
every time. If we work together to share information and solutions, we can cut down on the time needed
to assess and fix year 2000 problems in critical systems."
The electric power industry faces some key year 2000 challenges, among them: dealing with liability
that may arise from information-sharing, date-sensitive embedded chips in power production and
energy management systems and relay protection devices, maintaining the stability of the
interconnections between the Nation's electric systems, and a reliance on telecommunications
equipment that may be susceptible to year 2000-related failures.
Partners in the NERC Y2K program include the Edison Electric Institute, the Electric Power
Research Institute, the American Public Power Association, the National Rural Electric Cooperative
Association, the Canadian Electricity Association, the Nuclear Energy Institute, the Electric Power
Supply Association, and UTC, The Telecommunications Association.
y2k.gov |
