A Response Cost Model for Advanced Metering Infrastructures

The smart grid is driving the deployment of networked components within the traditional power grid to achieve greater reliability and control. However, those cyber components are creating new security vulnerabilities that could lead to significant disruptions if exploited maliciously. We propose a comprehensive cost model designed to assist in the selection of responses to malicious attacks on an advanced metering infrastructure. The cost model reflects the costs of response actions due to outages in the distribution grid, disruptions of the electricity market, and violations of contractual agreements among stakeholders. We also present a realistic implementation of the cost model using ArcGIS for topology generation and GridLAB-D for grid simulation. The cost model is a step forward toward achievement of automated resilience in the smart grid. It also provides comprehensive modeling for system dynamics and operation costs, while relieving utilities from the burden of manually assigning costs for response actions and modeling attacker steps.