The Emerging Interdependence of the Electric Power Grid & Information and Communication Technology (original) (raw)
Related papers
The current electricity utility system and its residing design principles can be traced back to the late 19th century when electricity needs were simple and power generation was localized and focused on community needs. This one-way interaction made it difficult for the grid to respond to the ever changing and arising energy demands of the 21st century. For over a century advances in information and communication technology (ICT) have made improvements to the grids efficiency, reliability, and quality of service (QoS). Yet, the utility industry has squandered many chances to fully exploit ICT advancements. The smart grid introduces a two-way communication infrastructure where electricity and information regarding generation, storage, transmission, distribution, and consumption can be exchanged between the utility and its consumer. In this paper, a detailed investigation of distribution services, power line communication (PLC) and wireless transmission characteristics, smart metering, area networks, and operation security is presented. This paper discusses the challenges and opportunities ICT presents to the future of the smart grid. We argue that through advancements in ICT, the smart grid provides a solution in creating an uninterruptible power supply that is more secure, more efficient, and more reliable than existing principles and technologies.
Sensing the Nation: Smart Grid’s Risks and Vulnerabilities
Int'l J. of Communications, Network and System Sciences, 2014
This paper presents issues and trepidations associated with transferring from conventional methods of electricity monitoring and distribution to the cyberspace, especially in developing countries like Nigeria where current approaches have failed to provide regular, reliable electric power. The Smart Power Grid is a developing concept already put to test, successfully, in very advanced countries. The implementation of the Smart Grid will include the deployment of many new technologies and multiple communication infrastructures. Connecting the electricity grid to the Internet can provide a lot of advantages in terms of control, data viewing and generation. However, in Nigeria, the proposal to transfer conventional methods to the Smart Grid has perhaps not hit the deck yet because of excessive focus on power generation, and because of the annotated reservations associated with the Internet, as the Smart Grid involves circulation and dispersal via inter-networking structures. This paper describes the key technologies that support Power Grid substation automation, summarizes the mode of implementation into the existing Nigerian electrical infrastructure and brings fore issues and mitigating approaches to provide a seamless and securitised transfer of the current power grid to the Smart Grid.
An Intelligent Next Step: Understanding Smart Grid Structure, Security, and Technology
2015
The current electricity utility system and its residing design principles can be traced back to the late 19th century when electricity needs were simple and power generation was localized and focused on community needs. This one-way interaction made it difficult for the grid to respond to the ever changing and arising energy demands of the 21st century. For over a century advances in information and communication technology (ICT) have made improvements to the grids efficiency, reliability, and quality of service (QoS). Yet, the utility industry has squandered many chances to fully exploit ICT advancements. The smart grid introduces a two-way communication infrastructure where electricity and information regarding generation, storage, transmission, distribution, and consumption can be exchanged between the utility and its consumer. In this paper, a detailed investigation of distribution services, power line communication (PLC) and wireless transmission characteristics, smart metering, area networks, and operation security is presented. This paper discusses the challenges and opportunities ICT presents to the future of the smart grid. We argue that through advancements in ICT, the smart grid provides a solution in creating an uninterruptible power supply that is more secure, more efficient, and more reliable than existing principles and technologies.
2009
The electricity grid has been up until now a relatively stable artifice of modern industrialized nations. The power grids are the most widespread wired networks in the world. They are heavily regulated and standardized to protect the integrity, stability and reliability of supply. The grids have been essentially closed systems, this is now rapidly changing with the introduction of the network enabled smart meter. These meters are "web" accessible, connect and interact directly with electrical appliances in domiciles and businesses. This move now brings a range of extreme risks and complexities into these stable networks. This paper explores the security issues and potential problems associated with current moves to provide these smart meters to existing grid connections.
The Challenges and Risks facing ICT in the Management and Operation of the Smart Grid
Renewable Energy and Sustainable Development, 2019
The Smart Grid integrates the traditional electrical power grid with information and communication technologies (ICT). Such integration empowers the electrical utilities providers and consumers and improves the efficiency and the availability of the power system while constantly monitoring, controlling and managing the demands of customers. Through the Smart Grid, the power system becomes smart by communicating, sensing, controlling and applying intelligence. It also keeps the environment free from pollution; minimizes the cost; and ensures effective operations against all types of hazards and danger. Smart Grid is a huge complex network composed of millions of devices and entities connected with each other through wireless communications techniques including Home Area Networks (HANs) and Wide Area Networks (WANs). Such a massive network comes with many security concerns and vulnerabilities. This paper highlights the complexity of the Smart Grid network and the challenges that exist in securing the smart power grid and the countermeasures and solutions applied for information and communication networks to secure Smart Power Grid. The paper concluded by overviewing the key functions and benefits of using the Smart Grid technology and how this affects human livelihood, economy and the environment.
Evolving Cyber Security Challenges to the Smart Grid Landscape
Integrating smart solutions into the existing power infrastructure promises to offer attractive capabilities of dynamic monitoring, measuring and even controlling power flows in real time that can help identify losses and trigger appropriate technical and managerial actions to minimize the damage. With the vision of building a Smart India, Government of India's National Smart Grid Mission (NSGM) is solely aimed at providing functional resources and financial assistance in planning and implementation of smart grids across the nation. NSGM proposes comprehensive solutions for the development, establishment, operations and management of smart grids, stipulate training & capacity building, strengthen consumer engagement and dispense funding to state-owned DISCOMs. Smart grid solutions vastly employ information technology in the underlying roots in varying forms of networking and application aspects to enable monitoring and control of the flow of electricity to end users. The extensive incorporation of information technology provides numerous benefits to the grid operations and management, such as increased visibility, predictability, in addition to the regulation of generation and demand to improve efficiency. However, this enhanced use of information technology to the grid has in parallel introduced the dimension of cybercrime to the smart grid as the grid is now constantly connected to the Internet and can be exploited by hackers by leveraging the wide array of cyber security vulnerabilities. Security of the smart grid is essential to ensure uninterrupted power supply and minimize resulting losses. Compromise of the grid may result in a huge information or business losses by the means of cyber espionage or grid collapse. An uninterrupted power supply lies at the heart of all sectors and failures to the same will result in cascading damages, compelling the establishment of robust smart grids. The paper offers insight into key cyber security threats and vulnerabilities concerning the smart grid technology and proposes protection strategies, methodologies, and technologies to safeguard the smart grid from resulting security damages.
ICT Vulnerabilities of the Power Grid: Towards a Road Map for Future Research
Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 2008
The transformation of the European infrastructure creates considerable system security challenges. GRID is a joint effort of six European research organizations to achieve consensus on the key issues involved by ICT related vulnerabilities of power systems in view of theses challenges. GRID has recently issued a preliminary Road Map for future research in the area, grounded on a survey on the position of the European industrial and research communities. The survey assessed the challenges raised and the research needs in this perspective. This paper reviews the conception process for the Road Map and provides motivations for the way it is structured. It also overviews the three areas of investigation of the Road Map: understanding the impact of risk and adapting society and organisations, developing risk and vulnerability assessment and upgrading control architectures. The focus is on the needs and the challenges within each area and the main objectives of the Road Map.
Current Efforts concerning ICT security of the power grid
2008
GRID is a Coordination Action funded under the Trust and Security objective of the IST Programme of the 6th Framework to achieve consensus at the European level on the key issues involved by power systems vulnerabilities, in view of the challenges driven by the transformation of the European power infrastructure and ICT integration. GRID wants to assess the needs of the EU power sector on these issues, so as to establish a Roadmap for collaborative research in this area. The present report provides a survey on current efforts somewhat related to the objectives of GRID. Similar to GRID, a number of European and US endeavours have attempted in recent years to draw a Road Map so as to coordinate efforts concerning energy transport/distribution research and CIP. How to obtain EU publications Our priced publications are available from EU Bookshop (http://bookshop.europa.eu), where you can place an order with the sales agent of your choice. The Publications Office has a worldwide network ...
Next Generation Real-Time Smart Meters for ICT Based Assessment of Grid Data Inconsistencies
Energies
The latest technological developments are challenging for finding new solutions to mitigate the massive integration of renewable-based electricity generation in the electrical networks and to support new and dynamic energy and ancillary services markets. Smart meters have become ubiquitous equipment in the low voltage grid, enabled by the decision made in many countries to support massive deployments. The smart meter is the only equipment mandatory to be mounted when supplying a grid connected user, as it primarily has the function to measure delivered and/or produced energy on its common coupling point with the network, as technical and legal support for billing. Active distribution networks need new functionalities, to cope with the bidirectional energy flow behaviour of the grid, and many smart grid requirements need to be implemented in the near future. However there is no real coupling between smart metering systems and smart grids, as there is not yet a synergy using the opportunity of the high deployment level in smart metering. The paper presents a new approach for managing the smart metering and smart grid orchestration by presenting a new general design based on an unbundled smart meter (USM) concept, labelled as next generation open real-time smart meters (NORM), for integrating the smart meter, phasor measurement unit (PMU) and cyber-security through an enhanced smart metering gateway (SMG). NORM is intended to be deployed everywhere at the prosumer's interface to the grid, as it is usually now done with the standard meter. Furthermore, rich data acquired from NORM is used to demonstrate the potential of assessing grid data inconsistencies at a higher level, as function to be deployed in distribution security monitoring centers, to address the higher level cyber-security threats, such as false data injections and to allow secure grid operations and complex market activities at the same time. The measures are considering only non-sensitive data from a privacy perspective, and is therefore able to be applied everywhere in the grid, down to the end-customer level, where a citizen's personal data protection is an important aspect.
Enhancing Cybersecurity in Smart Grids: False Data Injection and Its Mitigation
Energies, 2021
Integration of information technologies with power systems has unlocked unprecedented opportunities in optimization and control fields. Increased data collection and monitoring enable control systems to have a better understanding of the pseudo-real-time condition of power systems. In this fashion, more accurate and effective decisions can be made. This is the key towards mitigating negative impacts of novel technologies such as renewables and electric vehicles and increasing their share in the overall generation portfolio. However, such extensive information exchange has created cybersecurity vulnerabilities in power systems that were not encountered before. It is imperative that these vulnerabilities are understood well, and proper mitigation techniques are implemented. This paper presents an extensive study of cybersecurity concerns in Smart grids in line with latest developments. Relevant standardization and mitigation efforts are discussed in detail and then the classification ...