February 3 (SeeNews) - Romanian power grid operator Transelectrica [BSE:TEL] signed a $1.1 million (1 million euro) grant agreement with the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) for the establishment of a security operations centre, the company said on Friday.
The project developed by Transelectrica and its American partners encompasses a feasibility study and a pilot project that is to test and validate hardware and software solutions aimed at strengthening cybersecurity at the company, it said in a press release.
The preliminary steps for obtaining financing from the U.S. government agency were made in 2021 by U.S.-based artificial intelligence (AI) company Pythia and cybersecurity specialist Fortinet who have submitted the grant documentation together with Transelectrica. Fortinet will act as a subcontractor and contribute an additional $1.6 million, reflected in the value of the security systems it will provide for the pilot project, bringing the total value of the investment to $2.7 million.
“The cybersecurity of the national electricity transmission system is one of Transelectrica's most important priorities,” Transelectrica chairman of the board of directors, Gabriel Andronache, said.
Transelectrica’s majority shareholder is the Romanian state with a 58.69% stake. The company manages and operates 9,000 km of overhead power lines and 81 power stations. In 2021, Transelectrica booked a net profit of 449,891 lei ($100,370/91,805 euro) on a turnover of 3.7 bln lei, latest annual data from the finance ministry shows.
Transelectrica shares traded flat at 21.5 lei as at 1251 CET on Friday on the Bucharest Stock Exchange.
($=0.9147 euro)
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