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Physical Security & Monitoring


The Fight Against Animal-Caused Substation Outages

Every day across the country, animals enter substations for warmth, food, security, or simply out of curiosity. In many areas, wildlife intruding into power equipment has become the leading cause of outages – even more common than storms or vegetation. A single substation outage can cost tens...

Reducing Nuisance Alarm Rates from On-Site Security Systems

The physical security of electrical generation, transmission, and distribution sites is critical. The potential risks of a security failure are clear: disruption to service, damage to equipment, and intruder fatalities.To prevent costly incidents and meet the National Electrical Reliability...

Ensuring Compliance vs Building Resilience

The realization that the vast majority of substations have significant security vulnerabilities was crystalized after the Metcalf incident of April 2013, during which unknown assailants caused the failure of 17 transformers at the Silicon Valley PG&E transmission substation in Metcalf,...

Physical Security & Monitoring

Utilities Await New Physical Security Standard

U.S. regulator takes next step in approving physical security standard

BY PHILL FELTHAM, Editor-in-Chief
Electricity Today Magazine

Recently, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) announced a proposal to approve the physical security reliability standard (CIP-014-1), submitted by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) earlier in the year. This physical security standard is currently being developed in response to an armed assault that occurred on a California substation in early 2013.

Initially, FERC determined that...

Related Articles


Ensuring Compliance vs Building Resilience

The realization that the vast majority of substations have significant security vulnerabilities was crystalized after the Metcalf incident of April 2013, during which unknown assailants caused the failure of 17 transformers at the Silicon Valley PG&E transmission substation in Metcalf,...

Critter Guard

Animal Outage Prevention

According to the American Public Power Association, squirrels are among the top causes of power outages across the United States. Depending on your geographic region, there may be no “quiet” season - squirrels and other “Critters” can be active all year long.Since...

Animal Mitigation for Electric Utilities

Prevent animal- and bird-caused outages to improve reliability BY MARTY NILES, Cantega Technologies Utilities in North America are under enormous pressure from regulators, customers, and investors to improve reliability performance. Many of the mergers and acquisitions of utilities around North...

Digital Twins for Substations: Bridging the Physical and Digital Worlds

In the rapidly evolving landscape of power grid management, digital twin technology is emerging as a game-changer for substations. By creating virtual replicas of physical assets, digital twins bridge the gap between the physical and digital worlds, enabling enhanced operational efficiency and...


FERC Complaint Targets Duke, PJM Transmission Planning

A coalition of large energy consumers and ratepayer advocates has filed a complaint with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), urging the agency to prohibit transmission owners from independently planning "local" transmission projects exceeding 100 kilovolts (kV). The coalition argues...

FERC Rejects PJM Transmission Planning Change

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has rejected a proposal from PJM Interconnection, one of the United States' largest regional transmission organizations, to alter its transmission planning protocol. The decision represents a significant victory for state regulators who had expressed...

FERC Conference Highlights Challenges in Resource Adequacy

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) recently hosted the Co-Located Load Conference, a significant event that focused on resource adequacy, energy reliability, and the challenges of ensuring sufficient electricity supply amidst changing grid dynamics. As the energy landscape continues to...

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FERC Approves Interconnection for Talen Energy, Amazon Data Center

In a significant move that underscores the growing demand for reliable and sustainable energy to power the expanding digital infrastructure, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has approved an interconnection agreement between Talen Energy, Amazon Web Services (AWS), and Exelon. This...

Digital Twins for Substations: Bridging the Physical and Digital Worlds

In the rapidly evolving landscape of power grid management, digital twin technology is emerging as a game-changer for substations. By creating virtual replicas of physical assets, digital twins bridge the gap between the physical and digital worlds, enabling enhanced operational efficiency and...

simulation software

Three Serious Questions to Ask Now About Condition Monitoring

While condition monitoring is becoming an integral part of daily power grid operations, there’s a huge difference between simply checking on assets and truly proactive intervention. When a ‘check engine’ light goes on in a car, taking the directive literally and opening the...

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