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Watchdog Protests FERC Settlement Failing to Disclose Identity of Utilities Said to Violate Market Rules

Cyber Security, EnerKnol Impact-Misc Categories, EnerKnol Impacts, EnerKnol Pulse, Wholesale Power

Public Citizen Inc issued a protest to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission requesting it release the name of utilities that violated reliability standards, according to June 24 filing with the federal regulator. The North American Electric Reliability Corporation, which is responsible for enforcing the nation’s cybersecurity and reliability standards for the electric utility industry, issued a…

Trump Signs Executive Order to Protect Nation's Infrastructure from Electromagnetic Pulses

Trump Signs Executive Order to Protect Nation’s Infrastructure from Electromagnetic Pulses

Cyber Security, EnerKnol Impact-Misc Categories, EnerKnol Impacts, EnerKnol Pulse, Grid Modernization

President Trump issued an executive order on March 26 directing federal agencies to assess and plan against the risks of an electromagnetic pulse, or EMP, implementing the core recommendations of the decommissioned Congressional EMP Commission on an accelerated basis. An electromagnetic pulse is a high-intensity surge of energy that can disrupt or destroy sensitive electronics and electrical infrastructure…

U.S. Energy Department Engages Private Sector in Cyber-Attack Exercises to Strengthen Energy Sector Preparedness

U.S. Energy Department Engages Private Sector in Cyber-Attack Exercises to Strengthen Energy Sector Preparedness

Cyber Security, EnerKnol Impact-Misc Categories, EnerKnol Pulse

The U.S. Energy Department is conducting exercises with the private sector to enhance the energy industry’s ability to withstand cyber attacks in keeping with the National Cybersecurity Awareness Month dedicated to protecting critical infrastructure, according to an Oct. 26 press release. The agency’s Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response, launched in February, engaged…

FERC Approves Rules to Mitigate Cyber Threats Related to Supply Chain for Grid Systems

FERC Approves Rules to Mitigate Cyber Threats Related to Supply Chain for Grid Systems

Cyber Security, EnerKnol Impact-Misc Categories, EnerKnol Impacts, EnerKnol Pulse, Grid Modernization, Top News

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Oct. 18 approved reliability standards to address supply chain risks in industrial control system hardware, software, and computing and networking services. The rule, developed by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation builds on existing critical infrastructure protection standards to allay cyber security risks associated with the supply chain for…

Trump Nominates McNamee to FERC as Agency Examines Crucial Issues of Pipeline Policy, Resiliency

Trump Nominates McNamee to FERC as Agency Examines Crucial Issues of Pipeline Policy, Resiliency

Climate Change and Emissions, coal, Cyber Security, Electric Transmission, Energy Efficiency, Energy Storage, EnerKnol Impact-Misc Categories, EnerKnol Impacts, EnerKnol Pulse, Grid Modernization, LNG, Natural Gas, Nuclear, Oil, Solar, Wholesale Power, Wind

President Donald Trump nominated Bernard L. McNamee to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for the term ending June 30, 2020, to fill the vacancy resulting from Commissioner Robert Powelson’s resignation in August, according to an Oct. 9 release from the agency. McNamee currently serves as the Executive Director of the U.S. Energy Department’s Office of…

U.S. Energy Department Awards $28 Million to Enhance Energy Infrastructure Cybersecurity

U.S. Energy Department Awards $28 Million to Enhance Energy Infrastructure Cybersecurity

Cyber Security, EnerKnol Impact-Misc Categories, EnerKnol Pulse

The U.S. Energy Department announced the funding to support research partnerships that will facilitate next-generation technologies to advance cybersecurity and resilience of the electric grid and oil and natural gas infrastructure, according to an Oct. 1 press release. The projects will take innovative approaches such as redesigning existing architecture that makes the grid vulnerable to…

U.S. Senator Introduces Trio of Bills to Boost Funding for Grid Security, Energy Storage, Carbon Capture

U.S. Senator Introduces Trio of Bills to Boost Funding for Grid Security, Energy Storage, Carbon Capture

Climate Change and Emissions, Cyber Security, Energy Storage, EnerKnol Impact-Misc Categories, EnerKnol Impacts, EnerKnol Pulse

U.S. Senator Michael Bennet, a Democrat representing Colorado, introduced legislation on June 5 that would provide $5 billion in financing under the U.S. Agriculture Department’s rural utility service program for cybersecurity and grid security enhancements. A second bill would include energy storage under the department’s Rural Energy for America Program, providing financial support for agricultural…