Provisional interconnection service: connecting before the upgrades are finished
Limited interconnection service allowing a project to operate, at a restricted level, before the network upgrades identified in its studies are complete.
Provisional interconnection service allows an interconnection customer to begin operating before all of the network upgrades identified in its studies have been placed in service. FERC required transmission providers to offer it in Order No. 845.
The transmission provider performs a study to determine what output the system can accept in the interim. The resulting service is limited to that level and is subject to the curtailment and operating conditions written into the provisional agreement.
The arrangement does not relieve the interconnection customer of responsibility for the upgrades, and it does not confer a higher service level than the one requested. It is documented in an agreement or amendment filed with the Commission, where the interim limit and the conditions attached to it can be read directly.
Questions
- What limits apply to provisional service?
- Operation is limited to the level a study shows the system can accommodate before the upgrades are in service, and the service is subject to curtailment on the terms of the agreement.
- Does it change the project's cost responsibility?
- No. Responsibility for the identified network upgrades continues under the interconnection agreement.
Sources
- 01
Improvements to Generator Interconnection Procedures and Agreements, Order No. 2023
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission · RM22-14-000 · retrieved 2026-08-09
- 02
Pro forma Large Generator Interconnection Procedures and Large Generator Interconnection Agreement
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission · pro-forma-LGIP-LGIA · retrieved 2026-08-09