What is the main responsibility of the Reliability Coordinator when a Remedial Action Scheme (RAS) is armed?

The main responsibility of the Reliability Coordinator when a Remedial Action Scheme (RAS) is armed is to be aware of the impact on inter-area flows. A RAS is designed to automatically take actions to maintain system reliability during contingencies, and its activation can significantly affect the flow of energy between different areas of the power system.

Understanding the inter-area flows is crucial because these flows dictate how power is distributed across various regions, and changes in flow patterns can lead to reliability challenges or systemic issues. The Reliability Coordinator must continuously monitor these inter-area flows to ensure that the operational integrity of the grid is maintained, prevent overloads, and manage any potential cascading failures that could result from the activation of the RAS.

Managing system restoration, tracking generation capacity, and informing the public are essential tasks in their own context, but they do not directly address the immediate responsibility tied to monitoring the impacts of an armed RAS on inter-area flows. Hence, recognizing and managing the effects of RAS on the power system's stability is the primary focus here.