PRINCETON, N.J., Jan. 17, 2008

In a major move toward ensuring the reliability of the electric grid, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) today approved eight cyber security and critical infrastructure protection standards proposed by NERC. Set to become mandatory when the Commission’s order becomes effective in approximately 60 days, the standards will require bulk power system users, owners, and operators in the U.S. to identify and document cyber risks and vulnerabilities, establish controls to secure critical cyber assets from physical and cyber sabotage, report security incidents, and establish plans for recovery in the event of an emergency. The standards are already mandatory in Ontario and New Brunswick in Canada.

Applicable to the bulk power transmission and generation system, these standards were developed via NERC’s American National Standards Institute (ANSI) accredited process, incorporating thousands of comments from industry experts and operations personnel.

“The critical infrastructure protection standards approved today are a sound starting point for the electric industry to begin more thoroughly addressing cyber security,” commented Rick Sergel, NERC President & CEO. “As we move forward, we will address the Commission’s directives and continually evaluate how these standards are executed in practice. We will monitor key industry and technology developments. We will ensure that the bulk power system in North America remains as reliable as possible.”

The North American Electric Reliability Corporation’s (NERC) mission is to ensure the reliability of the bulk power system in North America. To achieve that, NERC develops and enforces reliability standards; assesses adequacy annually via a 10-year forecast and winter and summer forecasts; monitors the bulk power system; audits owners, operators, and users for preparedness; and educates, trains, and certifies industry personnel. NERC is a self-regulatory organization, subject to oversight by the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and governmental authorities in Canada. Learn more at www.nerc.com .