eFORT project developing a digital twin to tackle grid security
Image: eFORT
The Dutch demonstrator of the eFORT project is developing a digital twin of the grid to increase its resilience to cyber attacks.
The Dutch demonstrator, one of four being undertaken in the eFORT project, is developing the digital twin as one of its main solutions with the expectation of revolutionising grid security by enhancing cyber security.
In particular the focus of the demonstrator is on preventing cascading failures and power grid restoration following an outage.
Matija Naglic, Business Developer System Operations at the TSO TenneT, which is co-leading the demonstrator, says that while digital twin technology enables many advantages, the primary emphasis of the eFORT project is not only the building of a digital twin itself but rather the development of digital twin-based applications.
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Alex Stefanov, Power Systems Chartered Engineer and assistant professor at co-leader Delft University of Technology, explains: “Accurately capturing the condition of the system in real-time helps in creating a power system analysis for different scenarios that can be used for mitigating cascading failures.”
The digital twin, for which a proof of concept and other foundational work has been completed, involves a communication aspect and dynamic system modelling with the aim to act as a proactive defence mechanism, utilising artificial intelligence tools such as graph neural networks and machine learning techniques.
By foreseeing potential threats, it should safeguard the resilience of the grid in the face of cyber attacks.
The Dutch demonstrator is planned to provide several key solutions towards cascading failure prevention and system restoration.
These include the control room of the future, algorithms and strategies for secure grid operation and self-healing capabilities.
Other participants include the Dutch innovation organisation TNO, the European Network for Cyber Security, risk management specialist DNV and the CIRCE research centre.
The eFORT project, which is being supported through Horizon Europe, is aimed to develop solutions to increase both the cyber and physical resilience and the sustainability of the grid.
The four year project began in September 2022 and runs to August 2026.
Other demonstrators are in Spain. Italy and Ukraine.
