The US Department of Energy announced US$100 million in available funding for utility cybersecurity, GovTech reported on 7 October. The programme directs federal money toward electric utilities to harden operational-technology environments, improve incident response and strengthen defence against threats to grid infrastructure; the article summarises the offering rather than listing individual awards, and award recipients, cost-share requirements and closing dates were not detailed in the headline coverage. The announcement lands amid a broader policy push on OT security: the same day, cyber experts publicly called on CISA to make federal OT security rules mandatory rather than voluntary, arguing critical-infrastructure operators patch and segment too slowly without compulsion. Australian electricity distributors face the same threat environment, and comparable co-funded grid-security programmes (AUSMPW+ uplift) make the US model worth watching for settings on information-sharing and obligations.

• Source article