South Holland energy hubs receive €900,000 for cybersecurity

The ‘Cyberveilige Energiehubs’ (Cyber-secure Energy Hubs) project has been awarded a subsidy of over €900,000 from Kansen voor West to enhance the digital security of the energy system in South Holland. This funding supports a larger project totaling more than €1.9 million, involving twelve different organizations.

As the energy transition increases digitalization, the energy system becomes more efficient but also more vulnerable to cyberattacks. The project brings together small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and three fieldlabs in South Holland to develop innovative solutions for protecting IT and OT infrastructure. Key objectives include developing ‘Secure by Design’ energy services and energy hub architectures.

Specific technical developments include aXite Security Tools creating a ‘digital twin’ of the Slim Strandnet in Scheveningen to test vulnerabilities without affecting the actual power supply, and LiveDrop working on a virtual data diode solution. Arno Bonte, the South Holland deputy, emphasized that the energy transition requires a system that is not only sustainable but also digitally secure and reliable.