Cyberattacks on U.S. energy infrastructure have been on the rise in 2024. According to the 2024 Thales Data Threat Report, 42% of critical infrastructure companies, including those in the energy sector, suffered data breaches...more
In this Issue: Permitting Reform, the Supreme Court, EV’s, and Climate Week 2024 -
After nearly a decade as New York State’s environmental chief, I recently joined Foley Hoag to help the firm’s clients emerge as global...more
9/19/2024
/ Climate Change ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Electricity ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Projects ,
Energy Reform ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Renewable Energy ,
Utilities Sector
In This Issue: Battery and Energy Storage Systems -
2023 was a banner year for energy storage in the United States. Statistics reported by Wood Mackenzie show that in 2023 alone, energy storage deployment across all...more
6/24/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Batteries ,
Clean Energy ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Electricity ,
Energy Projects ,
Energy Sector ,
Energy Storage ,
FERC ,
Mergers ,
Renewable Energy
As part of the Biden Administration’s efforts to align energy cybersecurity efforts across the country, the U.S. Department of Energy (“DOE”) has funded the release of a set of energy distribution cybersecurity baselines for...more
3/7/2024
/ Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cyber Crimes ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Electricity ,
Energy Reform ,
Energy Sector ,
Incident Response Plans ,
Popular ,
Power Grid ,
Security and Privacy Controls ,
Utilities Sector
Federal agencies continue to roll out plans to address environmental justice issues, which has become a focal point in the Biden administration’s agenda. Now that the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA) is in effect,...more
On Friday, May 27, 2022, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued an order approving ISO-New England’s proposed tariff revisions, which phase out the ISO’s minimum offer price rule (MOPR) by 2024...more
On Wednesday, June 8, Foley Hoag hosted the Energy Bar Association’s (EBA) Northeast Chapter Annual Meeting at the firm’s Boston offices. The event featured three panels, which explored the changing laws, technologies, and...more
6/15/2022
/ Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) ,
Annual Meeting ,
Batteries ,
Energy Sector ,
Energy Storage ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
FERC ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
RTO ,
State Regulators ,
Transmission Planning
On March 24, 2022, the Department of Justice unsealed two indictments charging four Russian government employees in two hacking campaigns that targeted critical infrastructure in the energy sector. We cover these indictments...more
4/22/2022
/ Criminal Prosecution ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (CISA) ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Energy Sector ,
FBI ,
Hackers ,
Joe Biden ,
Mitigation ,
Popular ,
Russia
The United States Department of Justice unsealed two indictments in March involving four Russian government employees who have been charged in connection with two separate hacking conspiracies targeting the global energy...more
4/22/2022
/ Criminal Prosecution ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cyber Crimes ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Energy Sector ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Hackers ,
Indictments ,
Joe Biden ,
Russia
On July 28, 2021, President Biden issued a Memorandum on Improving Cybersecurity for Critical Infrastructure Control Systems. The Memo recognizes that the protection of the nation’s critical infrastructure lies not only with...more
The managers of the New England States Committee on Electricity (“NESCOE”) recently released a report (“Report”) to New England’s governors to advance its shared vision for a clean, affordable, and reliable 21st-century...more
On May 10, 2021, the hacking group DarkSide succeeded in shutting down the Colonial Pipeline with a ransomware attack that highlighted the vulnerability of the U.S. energy sector to cyberattacks. The attack led to a panic...more
6/7/2021
/ Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Energy Policy ,
Executive Orders ,
Hackers ,
National Security ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pipelines ,
Popular ,
Ransomware ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Supply Chain ,
TSA
This post is a follow up from our recent discussion of the cyberattack that took the 5,500-mile Colonial Pipeline offline last week and the growing threat ransomware poses to our nation’s energy system. On May 10, 2021, a...more
5/13/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Emergency Response ,
Executive Orders ,
FERC ,
GAO ,
Hackers ,
National Security ,
NERC ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pipelines ,
Popular ,
Ransomware ,
Supply Chain ,
Threat Management
It was not a matter of if, but when. On Friday, Colonial Pipeline Company, the largest U.S. fuel pipeline, closed its entire 5,500-mile pipeline system that carries liquid fuels, including gasoline, from the Gulf Coast of...more
5/11/2021
/ Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Emergency Response ,
Energy Sector ,
Information Technology ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pipelines ,
Popular ,
Ransomware
According to media reports, ransomware attacks against the manufacturing industry have more than tripled compared with last year. This dramatic rise in cyberattacks poses serious concerns about the vulnerability of critical...more
12/18/2020
/ Bulk Electric System ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Energy Sector ,
Executive Orders ,
Information Technology ,
Manufacturing Facilities ,
Power Grid ,
Ransomware ,
Trump Administration
Editors’ Note: This is the first in our fifth-annual end-of-year series examining important trends in data privacy and cybersecurity in the coming year.
The Growing Threat of Ransomware -
According to media reports,...more
12/17/2020
/ Bulk Electric System ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Energy Sector ,
Executive Orders ,
Information Technology ,
NERC ,
Popular ,
Power Grid ,
Ransomware ,
Trump Administration
On October 6, 2020, the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) released a 2020 Homeland Threat Assessment (“HTA”). According to Acting Secretary Chad F. Wolf, the “first of its kind report” identifies the primary threats...more
On July 23, 2020, the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), joined by the National Security Agency (NSA), issued a cybersecurity alert to operators of critical...more
The (“FERC” or “Commission”) recently issued an Order approving a request by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (“NERC”) to defer the implementation of several Reliability Standards scheduled to take effect...more
On April 2, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC” or “Commission”) Chairman Neil Chatterjee announced additional steps the Commission is taking as regulated entities struggle to balance ensuring continued...more
Following the governors in four other New England states in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu issued an executive order Emergency Order 17 (“Order”) directing the physical closure of...more
On March 19, 2020, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) issued its Memorandum on Identification of Essential Critical Infrastructure Workers During COVID-19 Response (“Memo”). The Memo identifies...more
Security experts nationwide warn that the United States should expect serious cyberattacks from Iran in the next few months. The anticipated attacks, retaliation for United States’ killing of Major General Qasem Soleimani,...more
1/15/2020
/ Cyber Attacks ,
Cyber Crimes ,
Cyber Threats ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Energy Sector ,
Foreign Relations ,
Hackers ,
Iran ,
Oil & Gas ,
Power Grid ,
Terrorist Threats
Editors’ Note: This is the second in our fourth-annual end-of-year series examining important trends in data privacy and cybersecurity in the coming year. Our previous entry discussed the CCPA. Up next: a look into how...more
12/17/2019
/ Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Electric Generation Suppliers ,
Energy Sector ,
Hackers ,
Natural Gas ,
Pipelines ,
Popular ,
Power Grid ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Risk Management ,
Utilities Sector
Rejection of Significant EV Expansion, Concern Regarding Interconnection Issues, and a Management Audit -
On September 30, the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities (“Department”) issued its order (“Order”) in...more