Passed on November 15, 2021, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) provides a strategic opportunity to upgrade the nation’s energy infrastructure for a clean, resilient, secure energy future.
The Department has a strategic opportunity to address the threats of increasing cyber-attacks and climate change-related incidents. U.S. energy systems are facing an unprecedented and evolving threat landscape. Incidents like Winter Storm Uri and Hurricane Ida in 2021, increasingly severe wildfires this year, and the continued threat of cyber-attacks on our energy systems by the nation’s adversaries. All of these demonstrate how each can disrupt our energy supplies, economy, and everyday lives.
Of the $62 billion provided in the law, Congress has provided DOE $27 billion to upgrade and modernize our electrical grid to make it more resilient to extreme weather and resistant to cyber-attacks, helping CESER advance its energy security mission. CESER is the lead office on several provisions, while also consulting on numerous other cyber and energy security-related provisions across the Department.
CESER-led BIL Provisions
State Energy Security Plans (Sec. 40108)
CESER will work with states to continuously improve energy security plans considering evolving risk profiles.
Enhancing Grid Security Through Public-Private Partnerships (Sec. 40121(C))
CESER is developing a Report on Cybersecurity of Distribution Systems to assess priorities, policies, procedures, and actions for enhancing the physical security and cybersecurity of electricity distribution systems.
Energy Cyber Sense (Sec. 40122)
The voluntary Energy Cyber Sense program will test the cybersecurity of energy products and technologies, including bulk-power systems.
Rural and Municipal Utility Advanced Cybersecurity Grant and Technical Assistance (Sec. 40124)
DOE’s Rural and Municipal Utility Advanced Cybersecurity (RMUC) Grant and Technical Assistance program will provide support to improve the cybersecurity posture of eligible utilities and increase their participation in threat information sharing programs.
Cybersecurity for the Energy Sector Research, Development, and Demonstration (Sec. 40125(b))
This program will enable participants to develop advanced cybersecurity applications and technologies for the energy sector through a number of activities including research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) funding, workforce development curricula, develop improved supply chain concepts for secure design, and more.
Energy Sector Operational Support for Cyberresilience (Sec. 40125(c))
This program will expand cooperation with the intelligence community for energy sector threat collection and analysis, enhance energy sector monitoring tools, and periodically test the emergency response capabilities of the Department.
Modeling and Assessing Energy Infrastructure Risk (Sec. 40125(d))
In collaboration with the Office of Electricity and the Office of Grid Deployment, CESER will perform certain modeling and assessment of electric systems that will guide investments in research, development, demonstration, and deployment, and will inform CESER and other DOE offices of opportunities to improve the security and resilience of these electric systems.