November 20, 2023 at 06:03AM
The US Department of Energy is offering a $70 million funding opportunity to electric cooperative, small investor-owned, and municipal utilities to improve their cybersecurity. The funding aims to enhance the resilience of the energy grid against cyber threats. It also focuses on decreasing energy burdens and improving cybersecurity knowledge and skills. The funding opportunity is managed by the Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response (CESER) and covers investments in technologies, training, processes, and technical assistance. More details can be found on the program’s page.
The US Department of Energy (DoE) has announced a $70 million funding opportunity for electric cooperative, small investor-owned, and municipal utilities to enhance their cybersecurity measures. This funding is offered as part of President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and is intended to strengthen the resilience of the energy grid against cyber threats that are becoming more frequent and sophisticated.
The Rural and Municipal Utility Cybersecurity (RMUC) Program, managed by the Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response (CESER), aims to not only improve cybersecurity but also reduce energy burdens on utility members and customers. It also seeks to enhance the knowledge and skills of employees at rural utilities in cybersecurity.
The funding opportunity covers three areas, with support for investments in technologies, tools, training, and processes to enhance the cybersecurity of eligible electric utilities. It will also strengthen the technical assistance ecosystem for these utilities and provide access to training for organizations with limited resources.
DoE CESER plans to offer up to 10 financial assistance awards in each of the three topic areas, with a performance period of 24-48 months for each award. The funding is seen as crucial to ensuring the security of utility systems and providing essential technical assistance and cybersecurity training to the electric utility workforce.
Detailed information on the funding opportunity and the participation requirements can be found on the program’s page. Interested parties are encouraged to attend an informational webinar on December 19.
In addition to the above funding, DoE CESER is offering $8.96 million to eligible utilities serving military installations. Up to 55 winning utilities will compete for $200,000 in cash prizes and technical assistance.
For further information on cybersecurity funds for rural water systems, the Department of Justice’s launch of a Cyber Unit to prosecute nation-state threat actors, or the resources provided by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) for securing K-12 education systems, please refer to the related news articles listed.