2026 NERC GADS Rule Changes: What Every Generator Owner and Operator
Needs to Know
NERC has released the updated Generating Availability Data System (GADS) Data
Reporting
Instructions, effective January 1, 2026. If you report conventional generating
units to GADS, and
you are required to if your unit is 20 MW or larger, there are several important
changes in the NERC
GADS Data Reporting Instructions 2026 that your team needs to be aware of before
Q1 data is due.
Below is a plain-language summary of the key NERC GADS 2026 updates drawn
directly from the
2026 DRI.
Contributing Operating Condition Is Required on Every Event Record
The Contributing Operating Condition (COC) field became mandatory in 2024,
replacing the old
voluntary Problem Alert field. The 2026 DRI reinforces this requirement and
significantly expands the
plain-language guidance and examples for each COC code. This is a clear signal
that NERC has
seen enough inconsistent reporting to warrant the extra clarification.
The COC field sits at Record 02, column 45 and is required on every event
record, including outages,
derates, reserve shutdowns, and non-curtailing events.
The most important rule to remember:
If the event would have happened regardless of any external condition, report
Code 0. The COC
captures the environment in which the failure occurred, not the failure itself.
When in doubt, the
answer is Code 0.
Here is the full set of COC codes for 2026 reporting:
Code
Condition
When to Use It
0
No Contributing Condition
Default for normal, everyday operations (blue-sky conditions)
1
Flood or High Water
Events caused by natural or man-made flooding
2
Drought or Low Water
Events caused by drought or abnormally low water levels
3
Fire, including Wildfires
Events caused by fire or pre-emptive shutdown due to fire risk
4
Lightning
Direct lightning strike damage during a storm
5
Geomagnetic Disturbance
Events caused by solar flares or geomagnetic storms
6
Earthquake
Damage or operational impact caused by seismic activity
7
Tornado
Events caused by a tornado or pre-emptive action
8
Hurricane
Events caused by a hurricane or pre-emptive action
9
Cold Weather Conditions
Equipment or operational failures due to cold temperatures
A
Hot Weather Conditions
Failures or derates caused by excessive heat
B
Ice, Hail, and/or Snow
Damage or access issues caused by frozen precipitation
C
Turbulent Wind
Damage caused by abnormally high or turbulent winds
D
Avalanche or Landslide
Physical damage from avalanche or landslide
E
Wildlife
Outages or damage caused by wildlife intrusion
Z
State of Emergency / Other External Disturbance
Governing authority intervention or other external disruption
The 2026 DRI walks through real-world examples for every single code. Scenarios
range from wildfire
pre-emptive shutdowns (Code 3) and zebra mussel intake blockages (Code E) to
cold-weather control
valve failures (Code 9) and geomagnetic disturbance pre-emptive unit trips (Code
5). If your team has
been unsure how to apply the COC in edge cases, the expanded example library in
the 2026 DRI is
well worth a read.
Expanded Design Data Fields Now Require Annual Review
Starting in 2024, NERC began requiring additional design data fields beyond the
original nine
mandatory fields. The 2026 DRI formally states that this expanded design data
should be reviewed on
an annual basis. This applies to:
- Fossil steam units
- Fluidized bed combustion units
- Gas turbine and jet engine units
- Internal combustion and reciprocating engine units
- Hydro and pumped storage units
- Combined cycle and co-generation units
If your unit falls into any of these categories, confirm your design data forms
in Appendix E reflect the
current configuration. This matters for a practical reason as well: design data
must be submitted and
up to date before event and performance data can be accepted by webE-GADS.
Reminder: The Original Nine Required Design Data Fields
For anyone onboarding new units in 2026, these nine fields must be submitted
before any event or
performance data:
- GADS utility code
- GADS unit code
- NERC Regional Entity where the unit is located
- Name of the unit
- Commercial operating date
- Type of generating unit (fossil, combined cycle, etc.)
- MW size (nameplate)
- State or province location
- EIA Plant number (U.S. units only)
Physical and Cyber Security Cause Codes Are in Effect
Introduced in 2024 and carried forward into the 2026 reporting cycle, the
following cause codes are
now available for all conventional unit types:
- 9090: Physical Security
- 9091: Cyber Security
- 9092: Physical Security (OMC)
- 9093: Cyber Security (OMC)
If a physical or cyber security incident causes or contributes to an outage or
derate, these codes
should be used. Do not force-fit these events into generic cause codes. NERC
tracks security-related
generator events separately for grid reliability analysis, and accurate coding
here helps the entire
industry.
Amplification Codes on U1 Events Remain Mandatory
This is not a new 2026 requirement, but it continues to be one of the most
common edit failures in
GADS submissions. For any U1 (Unplanned Forced Outage, Immediate) event coming
from in-service,
the amplification code is required:
- T1: Automatic grid separation trip
- T2: Manual or operator-initiated trip
- 84: Unknown (must be resolved and updated before year-end submittal)
Leaving the amplification code blank on a U1 from in-service will fail GADS
edits. If the cause is
unknown at submission time, use 84 and update it before the final year-end
submittal.
2026 Submission Deadlines
All event and performance data continues to be submitted through OATI webE-GADS
within 45 days
after the end of each calendar quarter:
- Q1 (January through March): due by May 15
- Q2 (April through June): due by August 14
- Q3 (July through September): due by November 14
- Q4 (October through December): due by February 14
If you are looking for GADS reporting software that keeps pace with annual DRI
changes, including
COC field validation, cause code updates, and automated edit checking, take a
look at PowerGADS,
which is built specifically for conventional NERC GADS reporting and submission
workflows.
Where to Get the Full 2026 DRI
The complete NERC GADS Data Reporting Instructions 2026, including all
Appendices covering
cause codes, utility codes, design data forms, performance indexes, and the full
COC example library,
is available directly from NERC at:
https://www.nerc.com/globalassets/programs/rapa/gads/conventional/2026-gads-dri.pdf
Have questions about how the 2026 rule changes affect your reporting setup? contact us directly.
NERC has released the updated Generating Availability Data System (GADS) Data Reporting Instructions, effective January 1, 2026. If you report conventional generating units to GADS, and you are required to if your unit is 20 MW or larger, there are several important changes in the NERC GADS Data Reporting Instructions 2026 that your team needs to be aware of before Q1 data is due.
Below is a plain-language summary of the key NERC GADS 2026 updates drawn directly from the 2026 DRI.
Contributing Operating Condition Is Required on Every Event Record
The Contributing Operating Condition (COC) field became mandatory in 2024, replacing the old voluntary Problem Alert field. The 2026 DRI reinforces this requirement and significantly expands the plain-language guidance and examples for each COC code. This is a clear signal that NERC has seen enough inconsistent reporting to warrant the extra clarification.
The COC field sits at Record 02, column 45 and is required on every event record, including outages, derates, reserve shutdowns, and non-curtailing events.
The most important rule to remember:
If the event would have happened regardless of any external condition, report Code 0. The COC captures the environment in which the failure occurred, not the failure itself. When in doubt, the answer is Code 0.
Here is the full set of COC codes for 2026 reporting:
| Code | Condition | When to Use It |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | No Contributing Condition | Default for normal, everyday operations (blue-sky conditions) |
| 1 | Flood or High Water | Events caused by natural or man-made flooding |
| 2 | Drought or Low Water | Events caused by drought or abnormally low water levels |
| 3 | Fire, including Wildfires | Events caused by fire or pre-emptive shutdown due to fire risk |
| 4 | Lightning | Direct lightning strike damage during a storm |
| 5 | Geomagnetic Disturbance | Events caused by solar flares or geomagnetic storms |
| 6 | Earthquake | Damage or operational impact caused by seismic activity |
| 7 | Tornado | Events caused by a tornado or pre-emptive action |
| 8 | Hurricane | Events caused by a hurricane or pre-emptive action |
| 9 | Cold Weather Conditions | Equipment or operational failures due to cold temperatures |
| A | Hot Weather Conditions | Failures or derates caused by excessive heat |
| B | Ice, Hail, and/or Snow | Damage or access issues caused by frozen precipitation |
| C | Turbulent Wind | Damage caused by abnormally high or turbulent winds |
| D | Avalanche or Landslide | Physical damage from avalanche or landslide |
| E | Wildlife | Outages or damage caused by wildlife intrusion |
| Z | State of Emergency / Other External Disturbance | Governing authority intervention or other external disruption |
The 2026 DRI walks through real-world examples for every single code. Scenarios range from wildfire pre-emptive shutdowns (Code 3) and zebra mussel intake blockages (Code E) to cold-weather control valve failures (Code 9) and geomagnetic disturbance pre-emptive unit trips (Code 5). If your team has been unsure how to apply the COC in edge cases, the expanded example library in the 2026 DRI is well worth a read.
Expanded Design Data Fields Now Require Annual Review
Starting in 2024, NERC began requiring additional design data fields beyond the original nine mandatory fields. The 2026 DRI formally states that this expanded design data should be reviewed on an annual basis. This applies to:
- Fossil steam units
- Fluidized bed combustion units
- Gas turbine and jet engine units
- Internal combustion and reciprocating engine units
- Hydro and pumped storage units
- Combined cycle and co-generation units
If your unit falls into any of these categories, confirm your design data forms in Appendix E reflect the current configuration. This matters for a practical reason as well: design data must be submitted and up to date before event and performance data can be accepted by webE-GADS.
Reminder: The Original Nine Required Design Data Fields
For anyone onboarding new units in 2026, these nine fields must be submitted before any event or performance data:
- GADS utility code
- GADS unit code
- NERC Regional Entity where the unit is located
- Name of the unit
- Commercial operating date
- Type of generating unit (fossil, combined cycle, etc.)
- MW size (nameplate)
- State or province location
- EIA Plant number (U.S. units only)
Physical and Cyber Security Cause Codes Are in Effect
Introduced in 2024 and carried forward into the 2026 reporting cycle, the following cause codes are now available for all conventional unit types:
- 9090: Physical Security
- 9091: Cyber Security
- 9092: Physical Security (OMC)
- 9093: Cyber Security (OMC)
If a physical or cyber security incident causes or contributes to an outage or derate, these codes should be used. Do not force-fit these events into generic cause codes. NERC tracks security-related generator events separately for grid reliability analysis, and accurate coding here helps the entire industry.
Amplification Codes on U1 Events Remain Mandatory
This is not a new 2026 requirement, but it continues to be one of the most common edit failures in GADS submissions. For any U1 (Unplanned Forced Outage, Immediate) event coming from in-service, the amplification code is required:
- T1: Automatic grid separation trip
- T2: Manual or operator-initiated trip
- 84: Unknown (must be resolved and updated before year-end submittal)
Leaving the amplification code blank on a U1 from in-service will fail GADS edits. If the cause is unknown at submission time, use 84 and update it before the final year-end submittal.
2026 Submission Deadlines
All event and performance data continues to be submitted through OATI webE-GADS within 45 days after the end of each calendar quarter:
- Q1 (January through March): due by May 15
- Q2 (April through June): due by August 14
- Q3 (July through September): due by November 14
- Q4 (October through December): due by February 14
If you are looking for GADS reporting software that keeps pace with annual DRI changes, including COC field validation, cause code updates, and automated edit checking, take a look at PowerGADS, which is built specifically for conventional NERC GADS reporting and submission workflows.
Where to Get the Full 2026 DRI
The complete NERC GADS Data Reporting Instructions 2026, including all Appendices covering cause codes, utility codes, design data forms, performance indexes, and the full COC example library, is available directly from NERC at: https://www.nerc.com/globalassets/programs/rapa/gads/conventional/2026-gads-dri.pdf
Have questions about how the 2026 rule changes affect your reporting setup? contact us directly.