Building and maintaining a hardened, resilient and secure grid of the future is essential for our nation to function at its best in a modern society.
December 12, 2016
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Building and maintaining a hardened, resilient and secure grid of the future is essential for our nation to function at its best in a modern society. The electric power grid faces an increasing number of hazards and threats – whether they are in the form of severe storms or cyber attacks. In the face of those challenges, the U.S. Department of Energy is committed to working with the interagency as well as partners in Canada to ensure the reliable and secure delivery of electricity throughout North America.
As part of the Obama Administration’s ongoing commitment to protecting America’s critical infrastructure, the White House today announced the publication of the Joint U.S.-Canada Electric Grid Security and Resilience Strategy and U.S. and Canadian Action Plans. This important milestone is the latest example of the United States’ strong relationship with Canada, and our shared commitment to strengthen North American energy security, accelerate clean energy development, and promote sustainable energy development and economic growth.
Through three strategic goals – to protect the grid and enhance preparedness, manage contingencies and enhance response and recovery efforts and build a more secure and resilient future electric grid – the joint strategy and corresponding U.S. National Electric Grid Security and Resilience Action Plan will help align cross-border efforts to reduce systemic risk to the electric grid.
Joint efforts between the United States and Canada on grid security originated during a March 2016 visit to the United States by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. During his visit, both countries agreed to develop a joint strategy.
The development of the strategy has been directed by the White House and co-led by the Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability and the Energy Policy and Systems Analysis office at the Department of Energy and the Department of Homeland Security, in close collaboration with our Canadian colleagues, industry, the Electricity Sector Coordinating Council, the North American Reliability Corporation, and federal partners.
Taking a shared approach to risk management and working more closely together will allow the U.S. and Canada to build a more secure and resilient electric grid that can better withstand hazards and recover more effectively from disruptions. Though this work is complex and will require numerous actions and ongoing collaboration, the U.S. Department of Energy stands ready to implement the Joint Strategy and the U.S. Action Plan and make this strategy a reality.
Patricia A. Hoffman
Acting Assistant Secretary, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Electricity
Former Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Office of Electricity (OE) at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Ms. Patricia A. Hoffman also served as Acting Under Secretary for Science and Energy from January 2017 until November 2017 when the U.S. Senate confirmed Mark Menezes as Under Secretary of Energy. Ms. Hoffman served as Acting Assistant Secretary for OE from January 2017 until October 2017 when the OE Assistant Secretary was confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
Ms. Hoffman was named Assistant Secretary for OE from June 2010 to January 2017, after serving as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary since November 2007. The focus of her responsibility was to provide leadership on a national level to modernize the electric grid, enhance the security and reliability of the energy infrastructure and facilitate recovery from disruptions to the energy supply both domestically and internationally. This is critical to meeting the Nation’s growing demand for reliable electricity by overcoming the challenges of our Nation’s aging electricity transmission and distribution system and addressing the vulnerabilities in our energy supply chain.
Prior to her this position, Ms. Hoffman served in a dual capacity as Deputy Assistant Secretary (DAS) for Research and Development (R&D) and Chief Operating Officer (COO) within OE. During her tenure as the DAS for R&D, she developed the long-term research strategy and improved the management portfolio of research programs for modernizing and improving the resiliency of the electric grid. This included developing and implementing sensors and operational tools for wide-area monitoring, energy storage research and demonstration, and the development of advanced conductors to increase the capacity and flexibility of the grid. She also initiated a new research effort focused on integrating and distributing renewable energy through the electric grid, such as promoting plug-in hybrid electric vehicles and implementing smart grid technologies to maintain system reliability. As COO, she managed the OE business operations, including human resources, budget development, financial execution, and performance management.
Prior to joining OE, she was the Program Manager for the Federal Energy Management Program within the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy at DOE. This program guides the Federal government to “lead by example” promoting energy efficiency, renewable energy, and smart energy management. Complementing her building energy efficiency experience, she also was the Program Manager for the Distributed Energy Program, which conducted research on advanced natural gas power generation and combined heat and power systems. Her accomplishments included the successful completion of the Advanced Turbine System program resulting in a high-efficiency industrial gas turbine power generation product.
Ms. Hoffman holds a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science in Ceramic Science and Engineering from Pennsylvania State University.