The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory recommends the Energy Department review the cybersecurity maturity of power utility vendors rather than ban those tied to China—a move supported by a wide range of other stakeholders.
Comments the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory submitted to the Department of Energy bolster those from industry groups and nonprofits urging the administration to work on increasing the supply of appropriate equipment instead of simply banning vendors tied to China.
“Eliminating weakness and vulnerabilities in the factory, so they don’t have to be tested and discovered after they are already in the field, will improve our nation’s security posture,” read comments from the national lab. “PNNL recommends that DOE work with vendors to improve the secure product lifecycle. This can be enhanced to create a realistic and usable best practice guide for all sizes of vendors. Strengthening products in the supply chain that the utilities use is critical.”
The comments were among those Energy published Monday in response to a request for information the administration issued April 20. The RFI sought feedback on how the administration should approach securing the energy sector after revoking a prohibition order issued under former President Donald Trump. The 2020 Trump order aimed at securing the bulk power system (BPS) gave Energy the authority to ban regulated entities from acquiring equipment from entities connected to foreign adversaries.
Groups including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Solar Energy Industry Association, American Public Power Association and the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association all praised Biden’s revocation of the order.
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