A syncretistic approach to grid reliability and resilience: Investigations from Minnesota

Recent Very Large Scale Events (VLSEs) such as Superstorm Sandy in 2012 and Hurricane Maria in 2017, which plunged millions of people into darkness, have led to discussions and an awareness of the importance of grid resilience. Historically such conversations have been about the reliability of the grid. With the increases of VLSEs and advancement in power system technologies, grid resilience which is a more holistic approach is being considered by industry stakeholders and policy makers. In this paper, certain frameworks and concepts for grid resilience and reliability are considered in order to develop a syncretistic approach for addressing the issue of grid resilience for power systems planning and operations. Grid reliability and resilience issues in the State of Minnesota are analyzed. A framework for the application of this syncretistic approach is developed and recommended for grid operators and policy makers in Minnesota.