WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Cybergy Partners, Inc. (OTC: MKHD) announced that today’s major power outage in Detroit, which trapped people in elevators and closed public schools, is just the most recent example of many similar grid failures occurring across the country. CEO, Mark Gray stated, “Our nation’s electricity infrastructure is outdated by the better part of a century. As the grid continues to age, we can expect similar incidents, driven not only by equipment degradation, severe weather, but also, unfortunately, by security breaches.”
China and "probably one or two other" countries have the capacity to shut down the nation's power grid and other critical infrastructure through a cyber-attack, the head of the National Security Agency told a Congressional panel recently. Admiral Michael Rogers, who also serves the dual role as head of U.S. Cyber Command, said the United States has detected malware from China and elsewhere on U.S. computer systems that affect the daily lives of every American. "It enables you to shut down very segmented, very tailored parts of our infrastructure that forestall the ability to provide that service to us as citizens," Rogers said in testimony before the House Intelligence Committee.
“Cybergy Partners focuses on providing solutions to fix and prevent future disruptions to our vital power systems,” said Steve Hauser, President of New West Technologies, LLC (New West – a wholly owned subsidiary of Cybergy Partners). “We have been actively involved in national efforts to focus attention on these critical issues.” New West is pleased to announce that our partner, GridWise® Alliance, has released a long-awaited report entitled “The Future of the Grid: Evolving to Meet America’s Needs” that frames the ways in which our electric grid must change to meet changing economic, security, and lifestyle demands. New West played a key supporting role in the initiative leading up to this report, including providing support for a series of workshops which culminated this past June. Throughout the planning and execution of the workshops, New West staff’s knowledge of the issues and the key stakeholders shaped the workshop format and helped draw top industry stakeholders to the events.
The New West team prepared tailored industry reports prior to each of the 4 regional workshops highlighting primary regional challenges to modernizing the grid. Staff also provided on-site support during the workshops to support visioning exercises and scenario planning. During the National Summit in Washington, D.C. in June 2014, Hauser and Patricia Hoffman, Assistant Secretary for U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability (DOE-OE), teamed up to provide closing remarks to the event. Since completion of the National Summit, New West has been working with DOE-OE and the GridWise Alliance to analyze the information collected and develop actionable recommendations to support the industry as it undergoes this crucial transition.
Hauser, who founded the GridWise Alliance in 2003, reflected on the year-long process, “This report represents the culmination of many years of groundwork by the GridWise Alliance; New West is pleased to be a key partner in its success. This is a pivotal time in the electricity sector and these recommendations will be a critical part of mapping our future as an industry.”
To download the report and find out more about the various workshops, visit www.gridwise.org.
About Cybergy and New West Technologies
New West provides trusted and valuable solutions for clients to achieve sustainable energy solutions for communities. In January 2014, New West was acquired by Cybergy Partners, Inc., an operational-focused investment firm, committed to building a premier, full spectrum, products and services provider to the federal government; state, local, and tribal governments, and commercial clients. For more information, please visit www.cybergypartners.com and/or www.nwttech.com.
