Centre fears dragon's virus may hit power firms

Hyderabad: The Central government is worried over cyber attacks on power projects, which are being undertaken with Chinese participation. Many corporate houses, including Lanco, Reliance and Adani, have given contracts to Chinese companies to set up power stations in several states in the country. 

Chinese firms have bagged contracts worth more than Rs 80,000 crore from Indian companies to construct power projects in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Odisha and other Indian states. Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry have awarded supervisory control and data acquisition system contract to Chinese firms on 18 power projects. Moreover, Chinese firms are constructing 10 major power plants in Indian states.

Currently, all power stations are being managed online. Chinese companies use their own software while handling power projects. An official said that the Chinese companies are able to manage Indian power stations from China.  He warned, “If anything happens, India may grope in the dark.” 

Senior officials said that it was difficult to protect these power plants from cyber attacks. A few days ago, Union energy minister Piyush Goyal said that the Central government would invoke the principle of reciprocity while awarding future contracts. 

The senior officials further said that the Central government is likely to ban Chinese power companies from power projects over security concerns.  A senior officer in the energy department said that the cost of power equipment is more among the Indian power firms compared to their Chinese counterparts. 

The Central Electricity Authority (CEA) is drafting a roadmap for securing India’s power stations and smart grid systems from cyber attacks. The CEA has also directed all state governments to take steps to prevent cyber attacks on power stations in their states.