FASIT is the Norwegian standardized system for recording and reporting faults and interruptions across the entire Norwegian power system. It provides continuous updates on power system component faults and interruptions experienced by end-users.
FASIT is a unique system and is used by all grid companies, power producers with facilities connected to the regional or transmission grid, large end-users, Statnett, and the Norwegian Energy Regulatory Authority (RME).
FASIT is developed and continuously improved by SINTEF Energy Research in collaboration with Renewables Norway, RME, Statnett (the system operator), and grid companies (license holders). FASIT is based on international standards (such as IEC and IEEE) related to faults and interruptions and is continuously updated to comply with applicable regulations.
New times, new requirements
The power supply in Norway currently has an availability (reliability of supply) of 99.98%. This means that, on average, we experience power interruptions of 2–3 hours per year. The basis for this figure comes from FASIT.
Today’s power system is significantly more complex than when FASIT was launched in 1995. In addition, electrification, digitalization, climate change, and geopolitical tensions will continue to impose new demands on both the operation and development of the power system, as well as on emergency preparedness. This also creates new needs related to recording and reporting fault and interruption data. There are four areas that require particular attention:
- Electrification and sector coupling introduce more dependencies and new types of failure sources, such as power electronics converters, electric transport, charging stations, and batteries connected to the grid.
- Digitalization and automation require integration with new data sources and systems, such as advanced control centre systems and state estimation.
- Climate change leads to more frequent and more severe events, ranging from extreme weather to infrastructure vulnerability.
- New threats and vulnerabilities create the need to record new types of data and require greater emphasis on emergency preparedness and security in the statistics.
To meet the emerging needs driven by electrification, digitalization, and new types of threats and vulnerabilities, FASIT must continue to evolve and ensure that society can rely on the power supply as a critical backbone in the years to come.
FASIT today
Over three decades, FASIT has been developed in step with the power system, regulatory requirements, and technological development. As a result, FASIT today is more than a system for registration and reporting; it has become an information system that forms a central part of the control and monitoring mechanisms of the power system. The “New FASIT,” with FASIThub and PQ Portal, has automated the exchange of information between grid companies. FASIT reports are submitted continuously, and the system is more closely integrated with RME’s grid portal.
FASIT covers all voltage levels in the power system and includes common terminology and definitions, data structuring and classification, guidance for registration, and software specification requirements.
There are currently four suppliers that provide approved FASIT software for use by grid companies and that hold license agreements with Renewables Norway. The FASIT infrastructure and target groups are shown in Figure 1:
Figure 1 shows the various tools included in the FASIT framework (as of 2019):
- Local FASIT software used by grid companies (“license holders”) for registration and reporting
- FASITweb for power producers and large end-users
- FASIThub for collection and exchange of data
- Kontrollweb (system operator/Statnett)
- PQ Portal, which provides insight into reliability of supply based on data registered in FASIT
- RME’s interruption statistics, based on data registered in FASIT
The database in PQ Portal is continuously updated as new FASIT reports are submitted. With these tools, the foundation is in place for standardized, high-quality data registration. This demonstrates that FASIT not only provides historical insight but also serves as a platform capable of meeting future requirements for security of supply, grid operation, and grid development.
Related expertises:
What can FASIT be used for?
The purpose of FASIT is to provide information about reliability of supply in the Norwegian power system. This includes both historical information on reliability of supply and data for estimating future expected reliability of supply. FASIT provides information about operational disturbances and planned outages, faults, causes, and consequences. It is also the system used to calculate the cost of energy not supplied (KILE). Through FASIT, it is possible to obtain:
- National standardized statistics that give regulators and the industry an overview of reliability of supply.
- Standardized methods for calculating ILE (energy not supplied) and KILE, which are essential for the revenue cap regulation of grid companies.
- Fault statistics, which are used as input for reliability of supply analyses and provide better decision support for maintenance, reinvestments, and emergency preparedness.
These data can further be used to analyse security of electricity supply, socioeconomic interruption costs, vulnerabilities, and other analyses where information about faults and interruptions is relevant.
A unique system internationally
FASIT is unique in an international context: we are not aware of any other country with a system that covers the entire power system—from low voltage to transmission—capturing both component faults and end-user interruptions, with the same degree of standardization and regulatory reporting requirements.
Among European system operators (ENTSO-E), work is ongoing to implement probabilistic risk assessment for coordinated operational security analyses. To apply these methods, it was necessary to establish common definitions and principles for collecting data on faults and operational disturbances. Earlier versions of the Norwegian definitions for faults and interruptions have been used as input to ENTSO-E’s guidelines “Grid Disturbance Definitions for the Power System above 100 kV”. The intention is for these guidelines to form the basis for a common disturbance statistics framework in Europe.
Norway currently has a reliability of supply of approximately 99.98%. FASIT has been an important foundation for achieving this by providing information on faults and their causes, as well as KILE data, thereby enabling continuous improvement of the power system.
Extraordinary events and vulnerability
FASIT has also been crucial for analyses and reporting of extraordinary events. The system has documented everything from line icing and transformer fires to large-scale blackouts. These data have been used at SINTEF for vulnerability analyses, for research on methods to identify vulnerabilities, and for developing methodologies for analysing socioeconomic costs.
Although FASIT cannot directly prevent events in the power grid, the knowledge it provides about causes, fault types, vulnerabilities, and consequences helps us anticipate future events by strengthening the resilience of the power system—and possibly preventing or mitigating the extent of unwanted incidents.
SINTEF’s research and expertise
SINTEF Energy Research developed the FASIT system through the project “Fault and Interruption Statistics” during 1993–1995 in collaboration with Renewables Norway, RME, Statnett, and grid companies. Since FASIT was first introduced in 1995, SINTEF Energy Research has continuously updated the FASIT specification in line with evolving regulations, technology, and industry needs. Our expertise related to FASIT includes:
- Definitions related to faults and interruptions
- Principles and standards for recording faults and interruptions
- Standardized methodology for calculating energy not supplied
- Principles and cost functions for calculating KILE costs
- Guidance and training in fault and interruption registration
- Courses in registration and use of fault and interruption data
- Analyses of faults and interruptions, and preparation of statistics
- Further development of the FASIT specification
- Quality assurance of FASIT software.
Related research projects:
- SecurEL
- Next generation FASIT
- Generally Accepted Reliability Principle with Uncertainty modelling and through probabilistic Risk assessment (GARPUR) (EU 2013-2017)
- HILP - Analysis of extraordinary events in power systems
- Integration of market models and reliability analysis (SAMREL)
- Vulnerability and security in a changing power system (Nfr 2009-2013)