Challenges with Electrical Grid Resilience – Proposal

Vraj Patel

School of Engineering Technology and Applied Science, Centennial College

ENGL-250: Report Writing in a Technical Environment

Faculty Name: Ekjot Kaur

Due Date: October 8, 2023

To: Ekjot Kaur, Professor

From: Vraj Patel, Student

Date: October 8, 2023

Subject: Proposal for outlining challenges and solutions of Electrical Grid Resilience

Summary

Being a student of Electrical Engineering Technology at Centennial College, I

have chosen to write a formal report on the topics of electrical grid resilience because of

the challenges of natural disasters and cyber-attacks on the electrical grid which questions

its resilience and aligns with my program of study.

Introduction

Modern society relies on the complex electrical grid, which generates, transmits,

and distributes power. Critical infrastructures like power and communication are

interdependent (Liu et al., 2020). Low-probability, high-impact events are often used to

describe resilience. Environmental and human threats like cybersecurity attacks can cause

these events. Hurricanes, winter storms, floods, wildfires, and earthquakes threaten the

electrical grid. Electrical outages due to weather have cost the U.S. economy $20 billion

to $55 billion annually. Human cyberattacks are also emerging and exposing electrical

grid vulnerabilities. The electrical power grid must be hardened against these threats as

they become more common (Cicilio et al., 2020).

Problem Statement

The challenge of ensuring the electrical grid’s resilience against natural disasters

and cyber threats is a critical and rising concern. There are multifaceted obstacles,
including physical infrastructure vulnerabilities and cyberattack risks, that threaten the

grid’s reliability as well as affect national economic security, public health, and safety.

Methodology

The analytical models, resilience metric framework, vulnerability analysis, and

failure mitigation strategies are needed to assess the difficulties of ensuring the electrical

grid's resilience against natural disasters and cyberattacks are all part of the assessment

process. The use of analytical models to assess the grid's vulnerability to natural disasters

is aided by the collection and analysis of historical data on natural disasters in the target

region, including the frequency, magnitude, and impact on the electrical grid; and the use

of historical data, geospatial information, and probabilistic modelling to assess the

likelihood and impact of events like earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, and wildfires on

critical grid infrastructure. This analysis provides numerical information about

precariousness. Identifying weaknesses and prioritizing mitigation efforts can be aided by

developing analytical models to investigate the cybersecurity flaws in grid control

systems, analyzing the system architecture, access points, and potential attack vectors,

and using threat modelling techniques to quantify the risk associated with various cyber

threats.

Threat scenarios, such as those posed by natural disasters and cyberattacks, can be

simulated with the help of executable models. The crisis response, communication, and

resource allocation can all be simulated in real-time with the help of these models.

Models that can be executed allow for the investigation of different recovery scenarios

and their effects.

 Analytical and executable models can be compared in terms of their accuracy,

scalability, and computational requirements, and their ability to provide actionable

insights and support decision-making in grid resilience strategies as part of a broader

evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of various modelling approaches.

Hypothesis

The proposed methodology integrates analytical models, executable models, and a

comparative analysis of modelling approaches to comprehensively assess the challenges

faced by the electrical grid in ensuring resilience against natural disasters and cyber

threats. It can provide a quantitative and simulation-based foundation for hypothesis

generation, testing, and informed decision-making in strengthening grid resilience.

Action

I would like to ask for your approval by October 12, 2023, so that I can start

working on the formal report. If there are any questions or concerns, please feel free to

reach out to me at vpate482@my.centennialcollege.ca.

References
Cicilio, P., Swartz, L., Vaagensmith, B., Rieger, C., Gentle, J., McJunkin, T., & Cotilla-

Sanchez, E. (2020). Electrical grid resilience framework with uncertainty. Electric

Power Systems Research, 189, 106801–.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsr.2020.106801

Liu, X., Chen, B., Chen, C., & Jin, D. (2020). Electric power grid resilience with

interdependencies between power and communication networks – a review. IET

Smart Grid, 3(2), 182–193. https://doi.org/10.1049/iet-stg.2019.0202