ISO Still Working on Trump Tariff Clarity
NYISO still is looking for clarification on President Donald Trump’s pending 10% tariff on energy imports, Joe Oates, chairman of NYISO’s Board of Directors, told the Liaison Subcommittee.
The Board of Directors “has authorized [NYISO] to seek any tariff authority necessary to comply with legal obligations that may be imposed on it,” Oates said. “Management is working through these issues internally and with members of the ISO/RTO community,” and with FERC. (See NYISO Assessing Impact of Trump’s Canada Tariff on Electricity Market.)
Oates said the ISO would address the issue in detail with stakeholders Feb. 25. He also said the ISO had not yet received any guidance from “anyone down in D.C,” as Kevin Lang, representing New York City, put it.
Clean Path
Oates told the subcommittee the board approved the changes to the 2025 Project Grant Plan, specifically approving the removal of its initiative to develop market participation rules for internal controllable lines.
This was done because of the New York Power Authority’s proposed changes to the Clean Path NY transmission project. (See NYPA Files Petition with New York PSC to Save Clean Path Project.)
“We remain ready to support the project in the future once updated details and plans are available,” Oates said.
A representative from NYPA thanked the ISO for its continued support of the project.
Cybersecurity Updates
Oates said NYISO successfully completed its triennial critical infrastructure audit by the Northeast Power Coordinating Council. The ISO scored “excellent,” and there were no areas of concern.
NYISO also continues to monitor cybersecurity developments with respect to “nation-state threat actors and global attack campaigns.” The ISO is implementing “three micro segmentation enforcement environments” within its networks to prevent persistent threats. Oates said this was a key element of the “zero trust” cybersecurity strategy the ISO was implementing.
The subcommittee receiving a classified briefing late in 2024 on Volt Typhoon, a Chinese state-sponsored hacking group. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency has warned that China has sponsored persistent intrusions into critical infrastructure. (See CISA Leader Reiterates China Cyber Warnings.)