The Ministry of Energy of the Russian Federation proposes to optimize the procedure for investigating the causes of accidents in the electric power industry

The Ministry of Energy has developed a draft resolution of the Government of the Russian Federation, which separates the concepts of an accident, an emergency situation and a systemic accident. The corresponding document is published on the federal portal of draft regulatory legal acts.

The project assumes that the composition of the commission and the level of investigation of the causes are determined depending on the consequences of a technological violation.

An emergency situation is understood as a violation that is localized at an electric power facility owned by one owner and did not lead to consequences for consumers, other owners or the energy system. The owner of the object investigates the reasons for its occurrence and development independently.

An accident is a technological violation that has consequences for consumers. It is investigated by the owner of the facility with the participation of the Ministry of Energy if the violation meets certain criteria.

The system accident affects the operation of the unified energy system and is being investigated jointly by the owner, the Ministry of Energy and the System Operator.

In addition, the regulation of the work of commissions for the investigation of accidents was determined, including in terms of the procedure for the formation of commissions, the terms of their work, as well as documents formed as a result of the investigation.

The document modernizes the rules for investigating accidents in the electric power industry, separating technological violations related to industrial safety.

The Ministry of Energy develops regulations on the safety and reliability of the functioning of electric power facilities, monitors how they work, and investigates accidents in the logic of these requirements. Based on the results of the investigation, if necessary, the regulations are adjusted.

The project will ensure systematic work to update the regulatory and technical base in this area, and will allow developing measures to prevent possible violations.