FERC & Federal
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is an independent regulatory agency that oversees the transmission of electricity, natural gas and oil in interstate commerce, as well as regulating hydroelectric dams and natural gas facilities.
Utilities must train their employees and become less wary of sharing information with other companies, cybersecurity experts told MARC in Des Moines.
Most computer users practice poor password security, and many working in IT and security would not recognize a phishing attempt.
DOE celebrated its research collaborations with the electric industry at the annual National Labs Day, featuring remarks by members of Congress.
State regulators considered the impact of a prolonged blackout for about half the country during NARUC’s first-ever “black sky” exercise.
Grid modernization and security were the focus of U.S. House committees as four bipartisan bills cleared one and a second held hearings on two proposals.
FERC called for reliability rules requiring generator owners to winterize units, citing a cold snap that caused MISO and SPP to seek load reductions.
House Energy and Commerce Committee members seeking details about foreign cyber threats were left wanting as officials declined to discuss specifics.
Utilities asked FERC to lobby against an FCC proposal that the companies say could disrupt their mission-critical wireless communications.
Registered entities asked FERC to clear the use of cloud computing, which they said could improve system visibility and security while saving money.
Panelists at FERC’s annual reliability technical conference praised NERC’s maturation but acknowledged challenges with the speed of standards development.
Want more? Advanced Search