The Entry-Level, Utility-Scale Solar PV O&M Technician Guidelines establish a transparent and valid set of standardized skills for entry level technician roles in operations and maintenance for utility-scale solar PV facilities that are connected directly to the grid. These guidelines can help:

• Alleviate the continued pressure on costs and resources
• Reduce bottlenecks in training
• Provide a stable, competent entry level workforce
• Reduce recruitment constraints by knowledgeable entry level O&M technicians ready for company qualifications and experience
• Decrease training duplication
• Reduce the pressure on recruitment and training. 

To address these issues in Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS), draft guidelines have been prepared in cooperation among the members of American Clean Power Association (ACP).

ACP is asking members to review these draft guidelines before they are finalized. These draft guidelines are open for public comment through March 8, 2024. Download this Excel Template to submit comments, then submit your file via email to workforcedev@cleanpower.org. Learn more about the comment period below.

The Entry-Level BESS Technician Guidelines will establish a transparent and valid set of standardized skills for entry level technician roles in operations and maintenance for BESS facilities. These guidelines will help:

• Alleviate the continued pressure on costs and resources
• Reduce bottlenecks in training
• Provide a stable, competent entry level workforce
• Reduce recruitment constraints by knowledgeable entry level O&M technicians ready for company qualifications and experience
• Decrease training duplication
• Reduce the pressure on recruitment and training.

Comment Period

The goal of these guidelines will be to provide a clear route for new entrants into the Battery Energy Storage industry and guide a person towards the appropriate training for the different job profiles of BESS operations and maintenance (O&M) technicians. When finalized, the Entry-Level BESS Technician Guidelines will establish a transparent and valid set of standardized skills for entry level BESS technicians.

Please note, public review commenters are required to submit all comments in electronic format using the Excel template linked on this page – otherwise, public comments may not be considered. In addition, all required fields on the form must be completed or the associated comments may not be considered. Reasonable accommodations will be provided upon written request to workforcedev@cleanpower.org. Questions concerning this process should be directed to workforcedev@cleanpower.org.

The collection system is typically arranged in radial strings of turbines connected to a collection point, typically at a collector substation. The most common collection voltage is 34.5kV, but other voltages may be encountered. These cable systems are commonly aluminum conductors with water tree retardant cross-linked polyethylene (TR-XPLE) solid dielectric insulation, copper concentric (flat or round) wire neutrals, and a protective polyethylene (PE) outer jacket.

Due to the length of some circuits, the cable segments are spliced together in various configurations with pre-molded, heat shrink or cold shrink accessories and directly buried in the earth. Another common solution is to use above ground junction boxes when cables are excessively long or when branches of the circuits are split or combined. These types of cable systems have proven to be highly effective in providing excellent reliability when inherent defects are removed at commissioning. However, when cable systems exhibit in-service failures, they can adversely affect wind farm operating costs, reliability, revenue, and most importantly, safety.

There are many different types of Cable tests mentioned in the industry literature, but this paper will cover five of the more widely available test methods used in the renewable energy industry to test medium voltage cables.

The American Clean Power Association (ACP)’s Drivetrain Working Group developed the ACP Gearbox Operations Playbook, with the intent to provide guidance for day–to–day operations of wind turbine gearboxes. Common troubleshooting scenarios and solutions will be discussed. The Drivetrain Working Group represents decades worth of expertise and experience, gained from wind and other industry sectors. The group’s objective is to inform, train and support wind industry technicians, engineers, and managers in their efforts to improve reliability and project performance.

Building, operating, and maintaining any power generation project requires an elevated level of electrical safety awareness, training, technical skills, knowledge, and the personal discipline to always act in a safe manner. Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) are unique in that they cannot typically be fully de-energized and there are so many tasks to be performed by so few technicians, often without the specializations found in traditional generation facilities.

The Guidelines for Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) Operations Qualified Electrical Workers may prove useful for both construction and maintenance technician. Although various agency requirements may apply, the focus will be primarily on operations and maintenance personnel as most construction tasks are performed before the site is energized and the general safety requirements for construction are well documented. This is intended as a guideline to assist companies in preparing their own QEW program.

ACP’s Electrical Safety Working Group finalized these Guidelines for Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) Operations Qualified Electrical Workers.

These guidelines are a part of ACP’s workforce safety resources. If you have questions about the guidelines, please contact safety@cleanpower.org.

The document serves as a guide for early and iterative communication between project proponents (or their representatives) and state fish and wildlife agencies (SFWAs) and helps establish expectations for the frequency of engagement and the suggested communication triggers. The framework does not provide a set of rigid steps or instructions, as there is significant variability across SFWAs and project proponents. Instead, it establishes a set of objectives and milestones that can be adapted to guide unique state or project communications.

This overview highlights the most impactful documents and is not intended to be exhaustive. Many of these C+S mandate compliance with other standards not listed here, so the reader is cautioned not to use this document as a guideline for product compliance.

This guide provides a graphic to show the hierarchy and groupings of these C+S, followed by short descriptions of each. Annex 1 summarizes some significant changes in the 2023 edition of one of the most important standards, NFPA 855, and Annex 2 provides a more detailed bibliography of the featured documents.

Read ACP’s FAQ document to learn more in detail.

The guidance is specific to ESS with lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries, but some elements may apply to other technologies also. Hazards addressed include fire, explosion, arc flash, shock, and toxic chemicals. For the purposes of this guide, a facility is assumed to be subject to the 2023 revision of NFPA 855 [B8]1 and to have a battery housed in a number of outdoor enclosures with total energy exceeding 600 kWh, thus triggering requirements for a hazard mitigation analysis (HMA), fire and explosion testing in accordance with UL 9540A [B14], emergency planning, and annual training. (The 2021 International Fire Code (IFC) [B2] has language that has been largely harmonized with NFPA 855, so the requirements are similar.)

This guide provides recommendations for pre-incident planning and incident response. Additional tutorial content is provided for each of the hazard categories. The Bibliography provides references to applicable codes and standards, and other documents of interest.

The Guidelines for Solar PV Operations Qualified Electrical Workers may prove useful for both construction and maintenance technician. Although various agency requirements may apply, the focus will be primarily on operations and maintenance personnel as most construction tasks are performed before the site is energized and the general safety requirements for construction are well documented. This is intended as a guideline to assist companies in preparing their own QEW program.

ACP’s Electrical Safety Working Group finalized these Guidelines for Solar PV Operations Qualified Electrical Workers. The Working Group has developed a similar document for wind.

These guidelines are a part of ACP’s workforce safety resources. If you have questions about the guidelines, please contact safety@cleanpower.org.