US Oil Production is Higher Than We Thought

When oil traders began obsessing earlier this year about U.S. crude production, analysts were quick to sound alarms.

Market participants have been eager to discern whether the country’s oil output has peaked. Last year’s swoon in oil prices prompted companies to sharply cut spending, and new drilling for oil in the U.S. has plummeted. Traders began parsing U.S. Energy Information Administration reports for clues, and previously little-noticed week-to-week changes in production began moving the market.

But analysts warned the market shouldn’t rely too heavily on the weekly figures, which are largely based on a forecasting model. Wait for the monthly reports, they said. But be wary of the monthly reports too, because they can and will be revised.

Thursday offered a case in point. The first March data to be released showed average monthly U.S. crude production at 9.5 million barrels a day, the highest level since 1972 and higher than indicated by the weekly data released in March. The weekly data showed that output peaked in mid-March around 9.4 million barrels a day, then declined, which boosted prices at the time.

The production data for February and January were also revised higher. The EIA now reports production of roughly 9.4 million barrels a day for both months, up from last month’s figures of 9.2 million barrels a day for January and 9.3 million barrels a day for February.

The updated figures suggest that the glut of oil in the U.S. may not shrink as quickly as bullish traders have expected. U.S. producers have gotten more efficient, and their service costs have dropped. Some producers now say that if prices stabilize around $60 or $65 a barrel, they can increase output.

“Threshold oil prices required to drive production growth are considerably lower than what people thought,” said Bill Herbert, managing director at Simmons & Co. International. Shale-oil production is only about five years old, he noted, and its resiliency in a low-price environment has never been tested before. “We are going to be learning an awful lot in the next three to six quarters.”

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GCCL Infrastructure & Projects reports standalone net loss of Rs 0.04 crore in the March 2015 quarter

Net loss of GCCL Infrastructure & Projects reported to Rs 0.04 crore in the quarter ended March 2015 as against net profit of Rs 0.03 crore during the previous quarter ended March 2014. There were no Sales reported in the quarter ended March 2015 as against Rs 0.05 crore during the previous quarter ended March 2014.

For the full year,net loss reported to Rs 0.07 crore in the year ended March 2015 as against net profit of Rs 0.01 crore during the previous year ended March 2014. Sales rose 120.00% to Rs 0.11 crore in the year ended March 2015 as against Rs 0.05 crore during the previous year ended March 2014.

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Caloocan City allots P125M for infrastructure projects

Road repairs and street lights installation get a huge chunk of Caloocan City’s budget.

The city has allotted P125,141,677.84 for infrastructure projects including improvement of roads and pathways, installation of street lights, improvement of drainage and the construction of multipurpose halls and barangay halls.

Road repairs on P. Jacinto Street in Barangay 165 and installation of street lights on Boni Serrano and 6th Avenue were given the biggest budget.

“We continue to strive in making our city not only business-friendly but also fit and safe to live in by the Caloocan residents,” Mayor Oscar Malapitan said in a statement.

“We want [the city] to be disaster-prepared and flood-free,” Malapitan added.

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Comment: Climate must be a factor in assessing coal mine ‘benefits’

Tony Abbott was in Townsville recently exhorting the region’s business community to develop a plan for a coal fired power station, one that could be paid for through the $5 billion subsidised loan facility set aside in the recent Federal Budget.

With those comments the Prime Minister gave a nod and a wink to an existing plan for a power station to be built next to a proposed coal mine in the Galilee Basin.

On the same day the International Monetary Fund estimated the cost of the world’s fossil fuel subsidies at $5 trillion dollars, more than what is spent on health care by all the world’s Governments.

The federal government has made moves to financially support infrastructure for the coal industry. Photo: Supplied

Here in Australia, as well as elsewhere, polluters are being subsidised to pollute, giving them no incentive to clean up their acts.

The Government not only wants this situation to continue, it wants it to grow.

When asked about the $5 billion set aside in the budget for as yet undisclosed “Northern Australia infrastructure”, Finance Minister Mathias Cormann responded “What it will do is it will be available to help us leverage private sector investment in important productivity enhancing infrastructure projects for tomorrow. Coal is an industry that I would like to see grow and prosper.”

Unsurprisingly the Queensland Resources Council welcomed the announcement, stating “this is great news for boosting the resource sector potential of Cape York and the North West Minerals Province”.

(For those of us who think of Queensland as more than just a quarry, ‘North West Minerals Province’ is what the mining industry calls the area between Longreach and the Gulf of Carpentaria.)

The Federal Government acknowledges that loans will be available to support projects the private sector “would not be able to finance without government assistance”.

So it’s interesting that Adani, the proponent of the Carmichael Coal and Rail project and the associated port expansion at Abbot Point, is currently on the lookout for capital required to fund its project.

That funding is unlikely to come from the new Queensland government, particularly since Premier Annastacia Palazczuk made it clear in the lead up to the state election that new infrastructure should be funded by business, not taxpayers.

“The onus is on the government and Jeff Seeney to stop hiding the details of the deal so that Queenslanders can know what price they’re paying,” Ms Palazczuk said at the time.

We now know the Newman government had set aside $33 billion from asset sales to fund infrastructure such as more than 100km of rail lines, airports, electricity links and water pipelines. For many Queenslanders this was an unconscionable drain on the public purse. Such overreach contributed to the Newman government being turfed from office.

The conditions for commercial applicants now looking to the self-declared coal-loving Federal government for such funds are not onerous. Loan recipients would be required to return at least the Government bond rate over the term of the loan. In other words, the Federal Government will borrow on behalf of projects that are commercially unviable and expect no risk premium in return.

This stands in stark contrast to the conditions placed on the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC), which acts as a co-investor, not financer, of clean energy projects. Earlier this year the Government changed the conditions for the CEFC, requiring it to make a considerably higher return from its investments than the average return from the market.

The Government’s priorities cannot be any more plain.

In a press release related to the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility, the deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development said “this work will assist in allocating funding to infrastructure projects that return the highest benefits to communities for a stronger and more prosperous northern Australia”.

The key test for the proposed fund will be whether or not projects, once they’re selected, do indeed return the highest benefits to communities in northern Australia – and that includes their impact on clean air and the climate.

It’d be hard to argue that building the world’s biggest coal port will bring the highest level of benefit to communities in the north. After all, a recent court case in the Brisbane Land Court found claims that the project would create 10,000 jobs were grossly exaggerated, with the real figure being 1,464 direct and indirect jobs at the mine.

Lots of leading global banks, including many of the biggest lenders to Australian fossil fuel projects, have raised concerns about Adani’s proposed Carmichael coal mine and rail project and port expansion, including Société Générale, BNP Paribas, Credit Agricole, Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland, Deutsche Bank, HSBC, Citi, Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs.

Queenslanders, along with citizens all over the country, would be justifiably appalled if this risky and unpopular coal mine ended up getting funded with their taxpayer dollars.

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Julian Fantino announces $20 million in infrastructure funding for Garrison Petawawa

Garrison Petawawa hosted a high-profile visitor on Friday morning, who was in town to deliver good news to anyone who lives on the base. Associate Minister of National Defence Julian Fantino announced $20 million in critical infrastructure funding at a special ceremony at the Normandy Officers Mess, representing a portion of the $452 million announced last November by the Harper government for improvement at Canadian Forces installations across the country.

“This funding will go towards projects in every province and territory,” Fantino said, reminding his audience of last fall’s announcement, “including dozens of initiatives right here in the province of Ontario.

“Today, I’m honoured to be with my colleague Cheryl Gallant to announce that more than $20 million will be spent on important infrastructure projects right here in Petawawa, to repair, renovate and recapitalize military housing units as well as making vital road repairs to improve traffic flow at the corner of Centurion and Montgomery and other areas along the way.”

Maintenance and upkeep of the roughly 1,600 residential housing units (RHUs) located on the base is costly, and many of those RHUs are in need of significant repairs to keep them in good condition and to improve the lives of the military families that occupy them.

The $20 million will be split between three major projects, all to be completed by 2017. The first, and largest by far, will be the renovation, repair and recapitalization (whole-house renovation) of the RHUs, and will come with a $16 million price tag. The other two will cost roughly $2 million each, and will consist of work on the exterior fixtures at other military quarters on base, and a reconstruction of the intersection of Centurion and Montgomery roads to improve traffic flow and ease congestion.

“These efforts will allow you to continue to benefit from high-quality infrastructure as you work and train to serve Canada and Canadians,” Fantino continued, “and of course we hope that this will also improve the quality of life for all of you and your families.”

Fantino highlighted that the influx of funding would not only be a direct benefit to those who live on the base, and an indirect benefit to anyone who works or even just visits the facility, but it would also be a boon for the local economy.

“Revitalization of defense infrastructure across the county” he says, “will provide the Canadian Armed Forces with the facilities they need – you need – to support operations at home and abroad, and to ensure the continued health and safety of our military personnel. And, of course, it will help improve the economy right here in the area of Petawawa by helping to create local jobs. I would say that on all fronts, this is a good news story.”

Speaking following the announcement, Lt.-Col. Louis Lapointe, deputy commander of 4 Canadian Division Support Group, agreed.

“This announcement is great news for Garrison Petawawa,” he said. “We take pride in our facilities, and support such as this will go a long way to benefit our military personnel and their families. Supporting a work force of this size is no easy task, but if you have the right infrastructure in place, it can be much easier. On behalf of our soldiers, and the family of Garrison Petawawa, I would like to extend our appreciation for this much-needed funding.”

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On Reflection: Don’t bring cyber crime in through the back door

Energy, as one of the 14 essential services requiring extra security according to the US Department of Homeland Security, receives additional unwanted attention from cyber-attackers.

The 2015 Dell Security Threat Report showed the number of attacks in 2014 on Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems doubled compared to 2013. Most occurred in Finland, the UK and US, probably because the SCADA systems are more likely to be connected to the internet.

SCADA systems control key functions in many critical infrastructure sectors, including wind farms, and are required to be kept secure and isolated from external networks. But it is sometimes necessary to connect portable media products for upgrades or maintenance.

To ensure these products are secure, wind farms owners need to create strict data workflow policies. These may be expensive to implement, but the cost can be justified by looking at the potential fallout resulting from a policy failure. Perhaps the most famous example is the Stuxnet worm attack, introduced via USB, attacking Iran’s nuclear facilities.

Security policies should limit portable media only to only those that are necessary for employees to perform their duties. USB drives could be prohibited, and if they are a business necessity we recommend using “trusted” and scanned USB drives, and to exercise extreme caution in allowing use of peripheral media by outside users.

Wind farm owners should also emphasise the importance of never using USB drives or other peripheral media devices of unknown origins on secure systems – it still surprises me how many employees collect and use USB drives from unknown sources.

The secure data workflow policy applicable to workers at wind farms should have multiple layers of protection, such as user authentication and source verification, to prevent unauthorised users or sources from bringing in data to facilitate future access, and guarding against known and unknown risks. Portable media should be classed according to their properties. File types too should be limited, blocking executable files and any encrypted files where no password has been given.

File type analysis and filtering will prevent risky file types from entering the facility, and leveraging multiple anti-malware engines simultaneously increases the likelihood of detecting new risks. Data sanitisation will further protect against the unknown by stripping potential threats out of documents and images.

One recommendation is to use media scanners at the wind farms themselves as well as at the central location where the SCADA data is collected. These scanners range from large kiosks to tablet installations, and operators would be required to scan all portable media drives.

Energy focus

The nuclear industry has led critical infrastructure providers in implementing secure data workflow policies, including portable media scanning. As wind farms increase in number worldwide, it is imperative that they adopt a similar approach. Attacks on energy are increasing; a recent report from US Industrial Controls Systems Cyber Emergency Response Team (ICS-CERT) showed that energy was the most targeted sector among all critical infrastructure providers. Wind farms must protect themselves by defining a robust secure data workflow policy that defines portable media security guidelines and allows the organisation to operate in the most secure and productive way possible.

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Governor Christie Announces Brigatine to Recive Funding From Flood Resiliency Project

TRENTON – Governor Chris Christie announced that Brigantine is one of the municipalities that will receive funding from the Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) Flood Hazard Risk Reduction grant program.

“Over the past two and a half years, we have worked diligently to deliver assistance to residents, businesses and communities at the Jersey Shore as they build back stronger and more resilient to withstand future storms,” said Governor Christie. “Through this grant program, we are taking another step in our commitment to fund risk reduction projects that will protect lives, homes and infrastructure, a crucial element of our overall comprehensive storm-resiliency strategy.”

The Flood Hazard Risk Reduction program is funded by a $50 million grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Community Development Block Grant Program to help municipalities pay for critical storm resiliency projects.

Brigantine in Atlantic County is receiving $1.4 million for the construction of three pump stations to protect roadways that are part of evacuation routes. Little Ferry in Bergen County is receiving nearly $653,000 for upgrades to a tide gate and pump station along the Hackensack River. Belmer will receieve a nearly $6.2 million grant the grant will fund a project to replace a narrow pipe that currently drains to the ocean.

Total combined funding for the three projects is $8.25 million.

“The projects in Belmar, Little Ferry, and Brigantine are being funded now because they are far along in the planning and design process,” DEP Commissioner Bob Martin said. “These are just the first of many projects that will help make New Jersey stronger and more resilient.”
The HUD-funded Flood Hazard Risk Reduction program focuses on critical risk reduction initiatives, which include addressing flood risks posed by coastal lakes and inland waterways, enhancing storm water management systems, and incorporating both man-made flood barriers and nature-based solutions.

Projects must be in the counties most impacted by Superstorm Sandy, as determined by the federal government, including Atlantic, Bergen, Cape May, Essex, Hudson, Middlesex, Monmouth, Ocean, and Union. Preference may be given to areas of low and moderate income in accordance with HUD’s national objectives.

Each application is being evaluated for potential effectiveness in reducing flooding and enhancing resiliency, compliance with environmental reviews, constructability, analysis of cost-to-benefits, protection of critical infrastructure, and other factors. The maximum grant award for any project is $15 million.

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Alberta wildfires are taking a positive turn

Weekend campers will be happy about this one.

Humidity, temperature and light winds have lead the Alberta Emergency Management Agency to lift the province-wide fire ban, although there are still some regional bans in place.

By Friday afternoon, better weather had helped the hundreds of firefighters dispatched, mainly in northern Alberta, to cut the out-of-control fires in half to five.

Scott Long, AEMA executive director, said the out-of-control wildfire at the Cold Lakes Weapons Range is still growing. It’s estimated at 27,500 hectares, larger than Cold Lake itself. One day earlier the fire had burnt 20,000 hectares.

The nearby Cenovus and CNRL oil and gas sites remain evacuated, but Long said the winds are now blowing the blaze away from critical infrastructure.

“I’m happy to say that the fire guards that we have in place between the fire and critical infrastructure remain effective and were improved overnight. We expect minor growth of the fire size may occur over the next day, but that growth is expected to be, again, moving away from critical infrastructure,” Long said.

Out of 43,000 hectares burning in Alberta this fire season, more than half is at the Cold Lake Weapons site.

Long said there is still a wildfire threat in the province, but — as of Friday — the number of fires had decreased by one to 41.

More than 270 firefighters from outside Alberta are helping out including crews from Ontario, BC, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, PEI and Parks Canada.

An Air quality advisory remains for northern Alberta and the Edmonton area but has been lifted for Lethbridge.

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Forget the world — rebuild America

The ancient Romans understood that the cohesion of empire required more than military might. It required infrastructure that facilitated trade and improved people’s daily lives. The empire eventually fell because too many people wanted to come in — something immigration reformers might consider.

The infrastructure Rome built lasted for many centuries. America’s vital infrastructure may not endure a single century. Were the Romans better engineers or used better materials? Not necessarily, but they did assiduously maintain what they had built.

America built the greatest infrastructure ever seen, but unlike Rome, America hasn’t been so diligent about maintenance. The American Society of Civil Engineers estimates the nation has a $2.2-trillion backlog of repairs and upgrades to vital infrastructure.

While the nation’s infrastructure rusts and rots away, the House cuts funding on transportation infrastructure by almost 93 percent in the 2015 budget. After the recent deadly Amtrak train derailment in Philadelphia, House Speaker John Boehner peevishly dismissed questions about the lack of Amtrak funding and blamed the crash on excessive speed. Boehner’s blustering distracts from the fact that available safety systems would have prevented the train’s excessive speed — had the money been there to install them.

When in 2011, President Obama proposed a $60-billion program for building and repairing infrastructure, Senate Republicans blocked it. They unanimously opposed it because it would have been funded by a surcharge tax on the wealthy.

Given a $2.2 trillion critical infrastructure repair backlog, $40 billion or $60 billion is small, but even that is too much for the bickering stooges in Congress.

Every year, Congress will spend hundreds of billions of dollars for various military misadventures and on policing the world. It will spend a trillion dollars, and counting, fighting the 100-year war in the Mideast, including building and rebuilding infrastructure there, but it quibbles about spending nickels and dimes to maintain our own infrastructure.

The Highway Trust Fund that maintains our nation’s highways has been running on fumes for years, but once again, Congress, rather than raise taxes or redirect funds from dubious programs or bloated defense, will only refuel the fund with scant funding.

Yet, Congress will bestow billions of dollars in subsidies to wealthy corporations. It will lower tax rates for the wealthiest Americans. It will pay Halliburton and other contractors hundreds of billions of dollars to build and rebuild in the perpetually war torn Middle East. It will ladle out billions for foreign aid and disaster relief around the world. It will give itself lavish compensation and retirement benefits.

But, it won’t maintain our homeland.

Fueled by corporate greed and jingoistic patriotism, America spends more on defense than do the next seven highest-spending nations combined.

America cannot maintain its greatness by patrolling the world with its massive war machine, while the homeland rots away from neglect. It’s time for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to come home and rebuild our infrastructure. It’s time to spend our money on our country, rather than wasting it interfering in chronic conflicts among peoples incurably addled by theology and savaging each other over their religious fantasies.

It’s time to take care of America and let the world take care of itself. Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria or, for that matter, Israel have nothing we want or need, and all they give us in exchange for our blood and treasure is more trouble. Wouldn’t we rather repair our bridges, dams and roads than rebuild Bagdad or construct another military installation in some corner of the globe?

America’s rotting infrastructure is a manifestation of its political rot. Only we can fix that.

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COMMENTARY: No more Band-Aids for America’s highways

With Speaker Boehner abandoning the committee process – refusing to allow the Transportation Committee to write a long-term bipartisan bill to reauthorize the Highway Trust Fund – Democrats on the Transportation Committee have joined me in support of the Administration’s GROW AMERICA plan to invest $478 billion over six years to rebuild our nation’s critical infrastructure – without adding to the federal deficit.

Our move came during another week of government by manufactured crisis in Washington. With Speaker Boehner playing to Tea-Party Republicans who want the federal government to stop funding highways all together, Congress had no choice but to approve another short-term extension to keep the Highway Trust Fund from expiring – a national disgrace that would have halted 6,000 critical highway projects in their tracks nationwide, and put 660,000 jobs in jeopardy at the height of the summer construction season. Here in Minnesota, federal funding accounts for 64 percent of our highway capitol program. And this summer, 600 major highway projects will directly support 9,487 construction jobs.

With 65 percent of the nation’s roads in poor condition and one in four bridges in need of significant repair – severely curtailing our ability to create jobs and grow the economy – the need for new sources of revenue is clear. Our GROW AMERICA legislation accomplishes that without adding to the deficit – by taxing some $2 trillion in untaxed foreign earnings that U.S. companies have accumulated overseas. Our bill includes substantial increases in support over the next six years for highways, freight, mass transit, railroads and ports. Moreover, the measure would boost vehicle and tire safety programs, and require manufacturers to act immediately to alleviate harm and inform consumers where there is an imminent risk of injury of death.

The Highway Trust Fund extension will last only two months. During that time, if the Speaker will allow, Republicans and Democrats will be doing everything in our power to write a long-term bill to fund the Trust Fund. Meanwhile, the GROW AMERICA ACT provides a solid foundation for an even longer-term solution to America’s rapidly worsening infrastructure crisis.

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Tuscarawas County Commissioners agree to fund projects with 2015 CDBG money

NEW PHILADELPHIA

Tuscarawas County commissioners have agreed to fund projects in Dover, Gnadenhutten, Lawrence Township and Warren Township with 2015 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) money.
All four projects, along with funding for the Fair Housing Program and administration expenses, will cost $194,000.
In addition, commissioners on Thursday approved an application for a $300,000 state Critical Infrastructure Grant, which would be used to pave Barnhill Road (county Road 68) from the Barnhill corporation line to the Roswell corporation line.
“It’s pretty worn,” said Scott Reynolds, director of the Tuscarawas County Office of Community and Economic Development.
The county will be competing with all counties in the state for the money, he said.
A total of 10 communities and organizations applied for the CDBG money.
“We have a limited amount of money,” said Commissioner Chris Abbuhl. “We try to do the best we can.”
Commissioner Belle Everett said it is difficult to chose which projects to fund. “I felt we made pretty solid decisions in these,” she said.
The projects include:
$41,000 for the village of Gnadenhutten to resurface a portion of W. Main Street. The village will contribute $63,345 to the project.
$55,500 for Lawrence Township to pave a portion of Kathryn Square and place 320 feet of storm sewer drainage pipe at the intersection of Kathryn Square and Hessmill Road. The township’s share is $13,778. Everett noted that this was the first time Lawrence Township ever applied for CDBG money.
$20,000 for Warren Township to resurface Adams Road NE. “That road is ready to turn back to gravel,” Everett said. The township’s share is $1,350.
$38,700 to the city of Dover for reconstruction of Fifth Street between Broad Street and the second public alley west of Tuscarawas Avenue. The city’s share is $63,300.
County officials should know by September or late October if they will be receiving the Critical Infrastructure Grant, Reynolds said.
The money would go to the county engineer’s office.
If Tuscarawas County receives the grant to pave Barnhill Road, it would not be eligible to apply for any more state competitive grants at this time, he said.
Counties are allowed to have only two grants at one time.
Last year, the county received a Neighborhood Revitalization Grant, which is being used to repave Eastport Avenue in Uhrichsville from 11th Street to Little Stillwater Creek.
The project includes installation of new sidewalks and curbs.
Work on the $754,000 project hasn’t begun yet, but should start by the beginning of 2016, he said.
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IWCE 2016 will include new showcase areas for infrastructure, wearables, drones and apps

Infrastructure, wearables, drones and applications initiatives for IWCE 2016 are all in the works as I write this blog!

We are launching quite a few new initiatives for IWCE 2016, with our largest one focusing around network infrastructure. Penton—the parent company for IWCE—recently made a strategic move by hiring Lucy Green, an industry veteran who previously worked with UBM on its Tower and Small Cell Summit at the CTIA Super Mobility show.

Lucy’s knowledge and relationships within the tower industry are immense. Be on the lookout for more information and our launch of a new IWCE forum focused on network architecture and infrastructure.

We also are excited to expand on our popular wearables program. In 2015, we conducted a survey on body-worn cameras for public safety, and the results were presented in a session at IWCE 2015. Last week, we hosted a paid online class examining the policy considerations surrounding the body-camera deployments. You can click here to access an archived recording of the class.

We will continue to pursue this growing sector. At next year’s IWCE 2016, body cameras will be a featured technology in a new area in the exhibit hall—the Wearable Technology Pavilion!

In addition, we are developing an exhibit-hall area next year that will showcase the capabilities of unmanned vehicles, or drones. These aerial demonstrations should be of interested to IWCE attendees from the public-safety, tower and critical-infrastructure communities, all of which are exploring drone use to improve service levels and efficiencies.

Finally, there is an app for that! Applications can play an important role in saving lives, troubleshooting, and collaborating. We are excited to introduce an App Center at IWCE 2016, where attendees will be able to interact with a variety of industry-related apps. If you know of an app that should be featured in the App Center, e-mail me atstephanie.mcall@penton.com.

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How can SCADA security be improved for oil and gas companies?

According to the recently released 2015 Dell Security Annual Threat Report, SCADA attacks are on the rise. The report found that in 2014 the number of attacks on Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems doubled compared to the previous year. Most of these attacks occurred in Finland, the UK, and the US, probably due to the fact that in these countries SCADA systems are more likely to be connected to the internet. The Dell Report came on the heels of findings from the US Industrial Controls Systems Cyber Emergency Response Team (ICS-CERT) showing that energy was the most targeted sector for attack among all critical infrastructure providers.

“Since companies are only required to report data breaches that involve personal or payment information, SCADA attacks often go unreported,” said Patrick Sweeney, Executive Director of Dell Security. “This lack of information sharing combined with an aging industrial machinery infrastructure presents huge security challenges that will continue to grow in the coming months and years.”

This does not come as a surprise to those in hydrocarbons. Many SCADA and industrial control systems (ICS) were built decades ago when cyber security was not yet an issue for the industry. There has been an inevitable collision as operational technology (OT) systems like SCADA come into closer contact with IT management modalities, introducing risks as systems not designed for outside connectivity are exposed to the internet.

In addition to their importance for hydrocarbons, SCADA systems control key functions for other critical infrastructure providers, such as utilities, airports and nuclear plants. Successful attacks on SCADA systems could potentially cause disruptions in services that we all depend on every day. For this reason, SCADA attacks are often politically motivated and backed by foreign state actors with motives such as industrial espionage and major supply chain disruption.

As attacks become more sophisticated and digital control systems increase in complexity, automation, and connectivity with outside networks, it is increasingly difficult to prevent threats from impacting upstream, midstream and downstream oil and gas operations. To add cyber security defenses to these systems is a major task, coupled with the fact that due to their critical nature, downtime for system upgrades is virtually impossible.

How to improve SCADA security

Given these challenges, what can be done to improve the security of oil and gas companies? Here are five ways to improve SCADA security:

• Air gap systems: Since many SCADA systems do not include robust cyber security controls, it is important to physically separate these systems from the internet and corporate network. If the systems are connected to the network, strong firewalls, intrusion detection systems and other security measures must be put in place to protect against unauthorised intrusion.
• Avoid default configurations: Avoid using default configurations on network and security appliances. Factory passwords must be changed immediately and a system of strong passwords and regular password updating should be enforced.
• Apply USB and portable device security: Since air gapped systems are not connected to the network, often the only way to bring files in and out of the SCADA system is by using portable media such as USB drives or DVDs. As portable media devices are key attack vectors for air gapped networks, it is very important to deploy a portable media security system that thoroughly scans portable devices for any threats before they are allowed to connect to the secure SCADA network.
• Defend against advanced persistent threats (APT): Attacks are becoming more and more sophisticated, with malware lying in wait undetected for a long period of time. It is important to fight APT’s at different levels; not only trying to prevent APT’s entering the network, but also detecting APT’s that have already gained entry. An effective way to detect APT’s is to use a multi anti malware scanner that will scan files with multiple anti virus engines using a combination of signatures and heuristics and will therefore be able to detect more threats. In addition, technologies such as data sanitisation can prevent zero day and targeted attacks that may be missed by anti malware engines by converting files to different formats and removing any possible embedded threats and scripts. Devices should be continually monitored for any abnormal activity and files on the network should be continually scanned with multiple anti-virus engines; a threat that was previously not detected could be found by an updated signature database. This step is especially important in instances where factory acceptance tests limit an operator’s ability to apply software and operating system patches in a timely fashion.
• Perform penetration testing: Regular penetration testing and vulnerability assessments, if possible conducted by a third party, are very helpful to get realistic input on the current security level and shed light on which areas still need additional security precautions.

The above measures, along with employee awareness training and continuous evaluation, will significantly boost the security of critical infrastructure systems.

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After infrastructure projects it comes the turn of the factories: Bulgarian PM

Stara Zagora. “After infrastructure projects it comes the turn of the factories. This is what rehabilitates economy,” Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov said at the opening of an Automotive Gasket Plant in the town of Stara Zagora, a reporter ofFOCUS News Agency announced.
The Prime Minister said that this is a huge investment, Bulgaria gives only 10-15%, and the rest are European investments.
“The government fully implemented the European programmes,” the Prime Minister added.
The plant manufactures automotive gaskets for the biggest auto companies from 30 countries, including Bulgaria.
The opening ceremony was attended by the Minister of Transport Ivailo Moskovski

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China’s big bet on infrastructure shows a commitment to innovation

China’s National Development and Reform Commission — a state economic planning agency with significant control over setting the direction of future Chinese economic growth — just released a list of over 1,000 projects requiring $317.75 billion in new public and private investment to move forward. The list of projects almost reads like a massive New Deal program for China, as it’s chock full of massive infrastructure projects — including highways, rail lines, subways and tunnels.

But that’s not all. There are also new municipal facilities, new water conservation projects, new parks and wetland preserves, new hospitals, and even a poultry and livestock trading building in Tibet. There are literally projects covering the entire breadth and width of China. Reading through the list of projects, you can almost feel the country straining against its borders and natural resource limits as it seeks to accommodate its swelling population.

As a result, China’s new PPP (public-private partnership) inventory provides a fascinating snapshot at the nation’s future innovation priorities.

Managing the growth of China’s newest mega-cities

There are plenty of massive infrastructure builds listed in the inventory of 1,043 projects, but none bigger than the $8.29 billion required to build out the Hangzhou Metro in Zhejiang Province. The Hangzhou Metro opened with one line in November 2012 and is now in the planning stages for several more lines. That comes as Hangzhou itself is ballooning in size, now one of China’s 15 mega-cities with a population of more than 10 million.

In the United States, how many cities are in the midst of a massive subway build-out, other than maybe New York City, with its $4.45 billion Second Avenue subway project? By way of comparison, the new investment required for the Hangzhou subway project is nearly twice the projected cost of the New York City project. And it’s not just Hangzhou – there are three new subway investment projects in Beijing, each requiring more than $7 billion.

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Sadbhav Infrastructure refiles DRHP for IPO; Xander, Norwest cuts offer-for-sale size

Sadbhav Infrastructure Project Ltd, which withdrew its documents to float its initial public offer (IPO) last Friday, has refiled its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) with Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for the public issue. It has now cut the size of fresh issue of shares as well as the quantum of shares offered for sale by its existing private equity backers Xander and Norwest V ….
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Infrastructure: Big word, big problem

I was happy to see Tom Baldrige’s column regarding our infrastructure crisis (“Pay now, or pay more later, for infrastructure projects,” Business, May 19).  A few years ago, our firm had the opportunity to conduct leadership training within the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, and we learned a lot about the status of our roads and bridges.  It is amazing to me that the media do not devote more space to this challenge.

As Tom asks, “How are we not able to find a way to fund something as critical as our country’s infrastructure system?”

My first thought goes to the enormous waste of money spent each year destroying other nations with our military spending. As we see more truth come out concerning our destruction of Iraq, it is a good time for citizens to study this issue and ask more questions. Where is the money going that could be rebuilding America?

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Major Infrastructure Projects: the Key to Growth and Development in Emerging Countries?

Casablanca Finance City, Dubaï International Finance Center, Mumbai Economic Development Zone or Tunis Financial Harbour: an impressive list of major commercial infrastructure projects, combining architectural and economic ambitions. Lately they’ve been blooming in countries where basic infrastructure are still lacking in the poorest areas, where the poverty rate is still high and income inequalities within the population glaring. Is there a paradox here? Is the development of these projects only the deed of a globalised elite disconnected from the realities of these countries or, on the contrary, a lever to accelerate growth and development?

Concept and critics

For more than ten years now, major commercial infrastructure projects have been multiplying in the Gulf countries, but also more recently in the Mediterranean and India regions. These projects aim to gather in the same district high standard business and leisure facilities, thus creating an unprecedented pool of resources: towers intended to accommodate both company offices and luxury apartments, shopping centers, but also recreational facilities, five star hotels, universities, parks…. Usually strategically located on the seafronts, these districts are literally intended to serve as a showcase of the economic and cultural vitality for thehost country, where they play a role as an economic, logistic and financial hub. The concept takes its inspiration from occidental financial districts such as the City of London or La Defense in Paris. However, these major projects are subject to a lot of criticism, especially in the light of the gap that may exist between these “islands” where resources and wealth are concentrated, intended to host a globalised elite of bankers and businessmen, and the reality experienced everyday by the vast majority of the population of the country.

And yet, behind these projects are men of convictions: politicians, economists, architects, banker, such as Ismaïl Douiri, Director General of Attijariwafa Bank and member of the Moroccan Financial Board (the body behind Casablanca Finance City), or Esam Janahi, who was one of the men behind Tunis Financial Harbor project, and contributed to the reflexionaround this very specific type of investment projects. As all the stakeholders involved in this kind of projects, Esam Janahi – who was granted an Honorary Doctorate from The Geneva School of Diplomacy and International Relations for his contribution towards accelerating growth in emerging countries in 2008 – is convinced that the economic ambitions that underpin the concept of Financial District go together with ambitions for the development of the host country.

Trickle-down economics

One might think that the development of such projects, organised around financial districts, are doomed to fail in emerging countries, because of the level of economic and social development that could be seen as “immature”. Indeed, in London and Paris, or New York, the Financial Districts were the result of a long process which had seen the economy moving from the primary sector to the industrial one, and eventually to the services sector. In emerging countries this process is sometime far from being complete and the economic and social structure is still very different, revealing huge regional and social inequalities. InCasablanca for example, even Ismaïl Douiri reckons that the project of Casablanca Finance Harbor takes time and can’t be deployed in just a few years, as it involves lots of regulatory changes and massive investment.

Does this mean that the deployment of these major commercial infrastructure projects is premature or inappropriate in a country where basic infrastructure is sometimes deficient? Well, economic theory and experience tend to deny it, and the success of these projects do not depend solely on the host country’s level of development. In fact, the concept of Trickle-Down Economics allows to highlight the reasons to believe that such projects can be a real lever for development and growth in emerging countries, not just a fad of real estate investors.

According to this concept, developed in the USA in the 1980s, regional and social inequalities are not an obstacle to investment. On the contrary, Investment, even in the services sector, will serve the reduction of inequalities and help the fight against povert, sometimes as efficiently as investment in basic infrastructures. Indeed, to maintain a high level of investment – in the financial sector for instance is to ensure high returns for the investors, but also for all the local economic stakeholders and the region, as flows of revenues will “trickle-down” the whole economy.

Impact on long term employment

To create almost ex-nihilo a financial and residential district, which also includes recreational facilities (hotel, golf …) is to ensure jobs creation in the short, medium and long term, and jobs that cannot be outsourced. In the short term, the building industry experiences unprecedented growth, attracting people from other regions, and creating revenue flows towards the local economy but also towards inland – and very often less developed regions where the workers come from.

Then, sustainable jobs in the services sector are created with the opening of resorts and leisure facilities. Likewise, one has to take into account all the jobs created in the service of employees of companies based in the district. Even if the latter are more often expat workers than nationals, they tend to earn very high incomes, which will be spent on services such as catering, education, dry cleaning, childcare, cleaning, etc.

Esam Janahi underlines the fact that far from being a side issue, the question of employment has been at the heart of this motion in a continuous effort to develop local economies, especially since a large number of investors are involved in these projects, including public ones.

Engine effect for growth and development

These income flows stimulate growth in the surrounding area and the whole region. The revenues that are generated contribute to increase to a similar extent the income of the State through taxation, which can be reinvested in basic infrastructure and redistribution policies for the benefit of the population. This also contributes to strengthen the attractiveness of the region for other national and foreign companies. Furthermore, the development of an advanced economic and financial sector ensures job opportunities for graduates, thus limiting the brain drain that tend to impoverish those countries and do not encourage investment in higher education.

The issue of training is also at the heart of a desire to foster development and work out the intellectual influence of these districts and their host country. As an example of this, most of the projects carried out by Esam Janahi, such as Tunis Financial Harbor, include university campuses and training centres.

In conclusion….

Although we still lack insight to assess the actual contribution of these projects to growth and development in these regions and countries, we can legitimately think that the image of a financial hub reserved to a globalised elite uncaring of development issues has to be nuanced. Without lapsing into a naïve vision, bankers and investors are aware of the potential spillover effect of these projects, both in terms of growth and development, and they know that a developed country is as much the result of growth as it is its best breeding ground.

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China looks for private partners for infrastructure projects

The NDRC’s website gives a list of the projects, broken down by region (link in Chinese).

The list of projects varies from sewage treatment plants in Dalian in the north east of China to rail and road projects in Xinjiang Uyghur autonomous region in the north west.

The NDRC is a central planning agency that “formulates and implements national economic and social development, annual plans and medium and long-term development plans”, according to its website.

In April, China announced that it would allow private investment in broadband services, and also that it would open its bank card clearing market to foreign firms.

The country also said last month that it would use its foreign exchange reservesto inject at least US$62 billion in capital into three “policy banks” to support the country’s ‘belt and road’ economic plan.

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MIKULSKI, CARDIN, DELANEY ANNOUNCE FEDERAL GRANT FOR WATER INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT IN ALLEGANY COUNTY

WASHINGTON – May 27, 2015 – (RealEstateRama) — U.S. Senators Barbara A. Mikulski and Ben Cardin, together with Congressman John Delaney (all D-Md.), today announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development (USDARD) has awarded a total of $700,000 in grants and loans to Allegany County for water and waste-disposal projects and pre-development planning purposes.

“Maryland cities and towns need to upgrade their water and sewer infrastructure but they can’t do it on their own,” Senator Mikulski said. “These funds in the federal checkbook will allow our rural communities in Allegany to update critical infrastructure. By investing in our water infrastructure, we are investing in the health and safety of Maryland families and businesses.”

“Having modern and reliable water infrastructure protects public health, conserves natural resources, saves energy and creates jobs. For each public dollar we put into water infrastructure, we see an increase in private long-term GDP output of more than six dollars,” said Senator Cardin, author of S. 741, The Water Infrastructure Resiliency and Sustainability Act. “Residents of Mt. Savage deserve the public health benefits and economic growth that come with having up to-date-wastewater systems. This wise investment in Maryland’s water infrastructure shows how America can create jobs and improve the quality of people’s lives by planning proactively, rather than waiting for our crumbling roads, bridges and water systems to fail.”

“Up-to-date water and waste infrastructure is critical to the health of our families, the health of our environment, and the quality of life in Western Maryland,” said Congressman John K. Delaney. “If we want to see improved economic growth and a flourishing jobs market, our investment in water infrastructure should reflect that. This grant will help businesses create local job opportunities and will provide Allegany County with the financial tools necessary to build stronger water infrastructure and a stronger economy.”

Allegany County received a $600,000 grant and a $100,000 loan to extend their current waterline in Mt. Savage to an additional 40 homes along Rt. 36 to Barrelville Rd.

The USDA Rural Development grant program was created to improve the economy and quality of life in rural America. The program helps support essential services and infrastructure improvements, and promotes economic development by supporting loans to businesses through banks and community-managed lending pools.

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SA infrastructure vulnerable to simply being ‘switched off’

Crucial gaps around the clarity of South Africa’s laws are potentially crippling the country‚ rendering it blind to its own critical infrastructure vulnerability — giving organised crime gangs the potential to bring everything to a grinding halt‚ cyber security experts say.

With hackers being specially groomed by crime groups and embedded in organisations vital for a country’s functioning‚ they say‚ it’s imperative the government’s cyber and law enforcement agencies have the legal ability to scan for infrastructure vulnerabilities.

“South Africa has the technology and experts‚ but a lack of clarity around laws‚” said Ignus Swart‚ speaking on the fringes of the ITWeb Security Summit in Midrand.

The summit has brought some of the world and country’s top cyber security specialists together to discuss the threats of cyber crime.

Swart‚ a cyber defence expert based at the Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research’s safety and security department‚ on Wednesday revealed critical flaws within the country’s laws.

The flaws could potentially prevent government from legally scanning‚ via the Internet‚ for flaws in infrastructure such as power stations‚ harbours‚ airports‚ hospitals‚ communication and industrial facilities.

The vulnerabilities include breaches in databases and CCTV and ventilation systems needed to keep critical hardware constantly monitored and cooled.

“In 2007‚ the Internet was believed to carry about 80% of information useful in detecting vulnerabilities. Today‚ it’s nearly 100%.”

He said this information was available to anyone‚ including hackers.

“We know of potential problems‚ but getting that information is incredibly difficult.”

Using open source internet services‚ people like Swart are able to glean the information‚ but he says it’s not all verifiable.

“About 40% of what we are detecting [vulnerabilities] is accurate‚ which is why we need these laws‚ so we can check properly and accurately.”

The same open source websites‚ which Swart uses‚ are exactly what organised crime gangs are using to infiltrate database systems of infrastructure critical to the functioning of a country.

He said while systems were vulnerable‚ the most vulnerable were staff. Crime gangs could have “extortable” information on their targets‚ and were therefore able to exploit them.

An example of such information‚ said Jason Jordaan‚ an organised cyber crime specialist‚ was the recent breach of the international website‚ Adult Finder.

“People‚ including South Africans‚ who could be politicians and company executives‚ have personal data‚ such as themselves engaging in ‘extramural activities’ on these sites which have been compromised. Those with the data can‚ and do‚ use it for extortion‚” he said‚ citing South Africa’s extreme vulnerability to organised crime gangs.

Swart said at the moment the country’s responses to certain vulnerabilities were reactive. “They need to be proactive.”

He said vulnerabilities within organisations’ computer systems‚ known as open resolvers‚ were being exploited.

“Globally there are 20-million ‘open resolvers’. In South Africa there are 4600‚ with hackers only needing 1000 to launch a significant unstoppable attack. This is how Estonia was crippled. Such attacks‚ which are a high possibility‚ are an act of war.

“These attacks are well masked‚ often launched from one country against its allies without the ‘attacking’ country even knowing until it’s too late.”

Swart said open resolvers‚ by their nature‚ only required a small reconfiguration to fix‚ which was often very quick.

He said scanning of open source Internet sites had revealed huge potential problems‚ with a wide range of South Africa’s infrastructure vulnerable to simply being “switched off“.

“We are vulnerable. Others can scan us and do so daily‚ but we by law at the moment cannot scan ourselves.”

He said information they gained from the open source services was being collected and collated.

“The problem for now is that the collation is manual. We are in the process of creating automated systems where this data can be collected and quickly verified.

“What is scary for us is not just vulnerability around hardware and software‚ but also that of personal human information‚ which companies are leaking at unacceptably high rates.”

He said two South African insurance companies’ databases were recently discovered available on the Internet‚ containing the information of nearly 800000 clients including contact numbers‚ addresses and salaries.

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Cyber-attacks: how to best protect the media and critical infrastructure

On 27 May 2015, MEPs discuss the EU’s preparedness to counter cyber-attacks such as those against the French broadcaster TV5 Monde and several French-language Belgian newspapers in April. Explore our timeline to learn more about cyber-attacks against the media in recent years.

Several major Western news organisations have been hit by politically motivated cyber-attacks over the past few years, mostly in retaliation for their critical coverage of events, countries or movements such as the Syrian regime or Islamic State. MEPs discussed on 27 May how the EU could help to counter such attacks. Check out our timeline to learn more about the attacks and read on to find out how the EU could help.

Existing situation

Only telecom companies have an obligation to report significant security incidents and to ensure the security of their networks and services.

 

Udo Helmbrecht, head of the EU Network and Information Security Agency, told EuroparlTV in March: “There is a regulation where there is an article that telecoms companies have to report but in the other areas you can say that everyone can still do what they want.”

New proposal

The European Commission adopted in 2013 its first ever EU cybersecurity strategy and proposed a new directive that would require owners of critical infrastructure such as energy, banking, health and transport to ensure a minimum level of security and step up cooperation on security.

“What we do aim to ensure is that whenever citizens deal with critical infrastructure they are protected from hacking attacks,” said Andreas Schwab in an interview with EuroparlTV last October. The German EPP member is leading negotiations on the new directive on behalf of the EP with the Council and the Commission.

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CH2M Welcomes Apollo as Investment Partner

CH2M, a global leader in providing critical infrastructure and natural resource solutions with annual gross revenues of $5.5 billion, announced today that it has agreed to partner with an affiliate of Apollo Global Management, LLC (NYSE: APO) (together with its consolidated subsidiaries, “Apollo”), a pre-eminent alternative investment manager with a history of investing in industry-leading companies. Upon the closing of the transaction, which is expected during the second quarter, investment funds managed by Apollo will invest $200 million in convertible preferred stock in CH2M. An additional $100 million investment will occur within the one-year period following closing.

“This investment will add to our financial strength and is the right next step toward spurring CH2M’s continued growth,” said CH2M Chairman and Chief Executive Jacque Hinman. “There is an enormous and expanding need for the work that CH2M does so well — solving some of the world’s toughest infrastructure and natural resource challenges. The financial and strategic benefits from Apollo’s investment and partnership will help us accelerate our growth, deepen our partnership with clients, push the limits on innovation, increase opportunities for our employees, and provide additional liquidity to our shareholders. This transaction will also allow us to consider innovative funding solutions to help our public sector clients meet their growing infrastructure needs.”

Apollo will hold two of six independent director seats on CH2M’s board of directors, while CH2M employees hold seven board seats.

Since the late 1880s, CH2M and its legacy companies have been providing clients with world-class infrastructure and natural resource solutions. In recent years, the company’s services have enhanced quality of life for tens of millions of people around the globe. Example projects include:

“Apollo has substantial expertise and a track record of success in making strategic equity investments in strong operating companies, including in the infrastructure and natural resources arena,” said Hinman. “But just as important for us, Apollo is a great cultural fit. Our dedication to strong values in corporate citizenship, ethics, safety and sustainability is highly valued and shared by the Apollo team.”

Apollo was formed in 1990 and currently has $163 billion in assets under management. Socially responsible investing is a core tenet of Apollo’s investment philosophy.

Antoine Munfakh, the lead investment partner for Apollo on this transaction, added: “CH2M is a marquee franchise with a century-long history of pioneering innovative infrastructure solutions for its clients. Today, CH2M remains a market leader serving attractive end markets with compelling opportunities for both domestic and global growth. The company’s success results from an incredibly deep bench of employee talent, and we look forward to bringing Apollo’s resources to bear in furthering that success and helping the company achieve its strategic objectives. The world has critical infrastructure and natural resource needs, and we believe Apollo and CH2M will be great partners in addressing these global challenges.” Mr. Munfakh will join CH2M’s board of directors at closing, along with one additional Apollo designee.

CH2M employs more than 25,000 of the industry’s best professionals and operates in more than 90 countries. CH2M is consistently recognized as one of the world’s top engineering firms by Engineering News-Record and was recently named one of the “World’s Most Ethical Companies” for the seventh consecutive year by the Ethisphere Institute.

About CH2M

CH2M is a global engineering and project delivery company partnering with public and private clients to tackle the world’s most complex infrastructure and natural resource challenges. The firm’s work is concentrated in the water, transportation, energy, environment and industrial markets. CH2M has gross revenues of $5.5 billion, has 25,000 employees and is a specialist in program, construction and operations management and design. For more information, visit www.ch2m.com.

About Apollo Global Management

Apollo is a leading global alternative investment manager with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Houston, Chicago, Bethesda, Toronto, London, Frankfurt, Madrid, Luxembourg, Mumbai, Delhi, Singapore, Shanghai and Hong Kong. Apollo had assets under management of approximately $163 billion as of March 31, 2015 in private equity, credit and real estate funds invested across a core group of nine industries where Apollo has considerable knowledge and resources. For more information about Apollo, please visit www.agm.com.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENT CAUTION

All statements in this press release other than statements of historical fact are “forward-looking statements” for purposes of federal and state securities laws, including any projections of growth, earnings, revenue, cash flows, tax rate, share count or other financial items; any statements of the plans, strategies and objectives for this preferred stock investment and future operations; and any statements regarding future conditions or performance. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in our forward-looking statements are reasonable, actual results could differ materially from those projected or assumed in any of our forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause our actual results, performance and achievements or industry results to differ materially from estimates or projections contained in forward-looking statements include, among other things: uncertainties related to global economic conditions and infrastructure funding; audits; modifications and termination of long-term client contracts; losses under fixed-price contracts; our limited control over operations run through our joint venture entities; misconduct by our employees or consultants; our failure to comply with laws or regulations; failure to successfully execute our strategy and plans; failure to recruit or retain key technical and management personnel; and unexpected adjustments and cancellations related to our backlog. Additional factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from our plans and expectations expressed in our forward-looking statements are set forth in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the UK Financial Conduct Authority, including our most recent prospectuses, our Annual Report filed on Form 10-K and our Quarterly Reports filed on Form 10-Q where you will find a detailed list of risk factors. You can find these filings on our stockholder information website at http://ift.tt/1AA85kj and on the SEC website at www.sec.gov. We do not intend, and undertake no obligation, to update any forward-looking statement.

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major turn in US oil production

Last week’s US oil-rig count signaled a shift for the energy industry.

Data from the driller Baker Hughes showed that the oil-rig count fell by just one. Though it was the 24th straight week of a decline, it was the slowest pace seen during this streak.

In a note published Friday, Goldman Sachs’ Damien Courvalin and Raquel Ohana further point out that the horizontal oil-rig count actually increased by four, the first such weekly increase since November 26.

This is a sign drillers are starting to change their behavior following the oil-price crash, which forced companies to shut down money-losing oil-production projects.

“We believe that should West Texas Intermediate crude oil prices remain near $60/bbl, US producers will ramp up activity given improved returns with costs down by at least 20%,” the Goldman analysts said. “Last week’s rig count is a first sign of this response and suggests that producers are increasingly comfortable at the current costs/revenue/funding mix.”

They assume that production will fall slightly through the second and third quarters before picking up in 2016 at the current rig-count level, which could turn positive in the coming weeks.

On Tuesday morning, WTI was down by less than 1% at about $59.31 a barrel.

This chart shows Goldman’s forecasts of US production at the current rig-count level:

Goldman Sachs

And here’s the chart of the decline in the rig count, which is starting to flatten ever so slightly:

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5TH INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOP ON REGIONAL CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE RESILIENCE | RESILIENCE PARTNERING

22 – 23 June 2015 | Palazzo Lombardia – Piazza Città di Lombardia 1, Milano

The development of long term, strategic relationships between public and private organisations is crucial for building superior infrastructure protection and resilience capabilities. Both well-established and emerging Regional Public-Private Collaborations demonstrate to foster infrastructure resilience partnering, thanks to closer and trusted relationships and consistent implementation of good practices.

MIRACLE project aims at promoting the diffusion and contributing to the harmonized development of regional Critical Infrastructure Protection and Resilience (CIP-R) programmes in Europe. Thanks to the direct involvement of three leading European Regions: Lombardy Region, Scottish Government and Kennemerland Safety Region, MIRACLE develops a learning and continuous improvement process based on the exchange of experiences and the identification of good practices. The European Union co-financed the project under the CIPS Action Grant 2012.

The 5th International Workshop on Regional Critical Infrastructure Resilience – “Resilience Partnering” will address world-class practices for the development of local public-private collaborations towards enhanced infrastructure resilience. Speakers and testimonials will bring distinctive experience and latest developments at local, national or supra-national level, whereas the presentation of MIRACLE’s main results will help to put these experiences into context and draw a framework for the alignment of CIP-R strategies and initiatives at different levels.

One of the main goal of MIRACLE is the launching of the CIRINT.NET International Network, a long lasting community-building instrument to put together public institutions, private operators, professionals and academics interested in fostering regional approaches to CIP-R. During the workshop, the formal signature of the CIRINT.NET Framework and Terms of Reference will take place at the presence of Governments’ representatives of the three partner regions.

The Universal Exposition EXPO2015 – “Feeding the planet, Energy for Life” is the perfect landscape for the workshop. It offers a broader thematic context, opens to conference participants a view on EXPO2015 security and resilience capacities (based on a cutting-edge solution specifically designed for the event), and a plenty of entertainment opportunities in the exhibition area as well as in the broader Milan metropolitan area.

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Security Researchers Start Effort to Protect ‘Smart’ Cities

It’s a brave new world when hackers step in to protect citizens because regulators are not getting the job done.

Two years after President Obamasigned an executive order setting voluntary guidelines that companies could follow to prevent cyberattacks — especially on critical infrastructure like dams and water treatment facilities — security experts have found that American critical infrastructure is still wide open to attack.

The order was a weakened alternative to cybersecurity legislation that the White House tried and failed to push through Congress after Senate Republicans argued the minimum standards would be too onerous on the private sector.

Last year, Cesar Cerrudo, an Argentine security researcher, began pointing out critical vulnerabilities in America’s so-called smart cities, where wireless sensors control a growing portion of city infrastructure from traffic lights to water and waste management systems.

One year later, Mr. Cerrudo discovered that little had been done to patch those basic vulnerabilities, even as cities around the world poured billions of dollars into bringing more of their basic infrastructure online. Without renewed focus on security, he and other researchers warn, those cities are just creating larger and larger targets for nation states and cyberterrorists.

“What I found is that there are a lot of security problems — the situation is really bad — but I didn’t want to just point out problems without offering solutions,” Mr. Cerrudo said.

In response, on Tuesday, he and others from IOActive Labs; Kaspersky Lab, the Russian cybersecurity company; and a growing list of security experts will announce a new Securing Smart Cities initiative. Their goal is to bring private security researchers and public administrators together to set up basic cybersecurity checklists for smart cities, including properly installed encryption, passwords and systems that can be easily patched for security holes.

They are also seeking to set up better security requirements and approval procedures for the vendors who install, monitor and oversee crucial systems. They want to track access to smart city systems; run regular tests to look for loopholes; and set up emergency response teams that can funnel reports of vulnerabilities from security researchers, coordinate patches and share that information with other cities. They also want to create manual overrides for all smart city systems, in the event they are compromised.

Surprisingly, as it stands, there is no such comprehensive system for vetting security and responding to cyberattacks at the city level.

This, even as spending on smart city technology balloons. In Saudi Arabia, $70 million has been poured into a project to build four smart cities. In South Africa, $7.4 billion has been funneled into a smart city project now underway. By 2020, the market for smart cities is expected to reach $1 trillion, according to Frost & Sullivan, a consulting firm.

“Every day cities are incorporating new technologies really fast without any testing and they are putting citizens and businesses at risk,” Mr. Cerrudo said in an interview. “Every day we depend more and more on technology. If that technology is not secure and protected, it will get attacked, and people and businesses will suffer the consequences.”

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Bill C-51 and You

Bill C-51 – also referred to as the Anti-Terrorism Act – is a pretty unpopular now a-days, as the Tories watch the approval rating in the polls plummet as more and more people became aware of what its implementation would mean.

Starting at 82 per cent, its approval rating dropped to 38 per cent.

It has passed in the House of Commons with a vote of 183-96 which sparked continued protests across the country. If carried in the Senate, it would amend the criminal code and allow different government agencies to share information about *you*.

The current Harper government – now in power for nine years – wants Canadians to believe that this *you* is the gun-toting terrorist bringing the Canada-hate to the front lawn of the capitol.

While the *you* might actually be a young, First Nations girl attending community college concerned about the disappearance of her kin . Or the *you* might be the 60-something environmentalist who doesn’t believe it is prudent to run an oil pipeline through a watershed.

This said, the *you* that will probably be most impacted by the passing of Bill C-51 will be Indigenous rights activists.

Because by being an activist, you are intrinsically going against the state. And do you know who also goes against the state? Terrorists! …or so the Tory logic goes.

Indigenous academic, Pam Palmater, writes, “All of the rights, freedoms and liberties upon which Canadian democracy rests will be suspended with Bill C-51. This bill creates what has been described as Harper’s “Secret Police force” with terrifying expanded powers. The purpose of the bill is to eliminate any “threat to security of Canada” which includes any activity that undermines the sovereignty, security or territorial integrity of Canada. It also includes some of the following interference with the administration of justice; interference with diplomatic relations; the economic or financial stability of Canada; terrorism; and interference with critical infrastructure.”

So demonstrating against the tar sands pipeline across your traditional territory could be construed under Bill C-51 as, interfering with, “economic and financial stability of Canada”, as“terrorism” and as “interference with critical infrastructure”.

And if you live in B.C., don’t even think about shutting down the port again to protest the potential harm oil tankers could have on the ecosystem as that too could theoretically being construed as, interfering with, “economic and financial stability of Canada”, as “terrorism” and as “interference with critical infrastructure”.

Nevermind if anyone disrupts construction work along Enbridge Line 9. It’s the same story. *You* are not to interfere with, “economic and financial stability of Canada”, as “terrorism” and as “interference with critical infrastructure”.

Assembly for First Nations (AFN) Chief Perry Bellegarde is quite concerned with the potential for government misuse of this bill to brand any Indigenous dissent as a terrorist as they stand up for treaty or environmental rights.

Appearing before the House of Commons national security committee on Thursday March 12, 2015, he said, “The key issues at stake in Bill C-51 are the state’s power to place individuals or groups under surveillance, to monitor their everyday activities, to create criminal offenses that affect our ability to exercise our legally recognized rights, and the overall relationship of state power to fundamental human and indigenous rights.”

Bellregarde also noted the lack of consultation – again –regarding legislation that could potential affect settler government and Indigenous relations.

The AFN chief also told the crowd, “This generation is not going to forsake our ability to protect our lands and territories and rights that has ensured our survival.

Where is Idle No More when you need them?

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A look at the development of the ICS security framework

Building the ICS security framework was an in-depth process and combined many different cybersecurity standards. Here’s a look at how it developed.

On February 12, 2014, President Obama signed the Executive Order 13686 to improve cybersecurity of the nation’s critical infrastructure. With this order, he also directed the National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) “… to lead the development of a framework to reduce cyber risks to critical infrastructure (the Cybersecurity Framework).” Subsequently there was a flurry of activity by NIST and multiple entities and individuals…

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Cyber firms launch effort to secure ‘smart’ cities

A cadre of security experts on Tuesday launched an initiative to secure increasingly Internet-dependent cities, citing worries the public and private sectors aren’t moving fast enough.

Securing Smart Cities is backed by security bigwigs IOActive Labs and Kaspersky Lab, along with a number of prominent security researchers.The group’s backers fear that countries are dumping money into creating “smart,” Internet-connected cities, but not building in basic security measures.

To counter this trend, they’re aiming to bring together researchers, private companies and public officials to create cybersecurity standards for all infrastructure being brought online.

“If not addressed early on, the cost and complexity of creating a smart city could make it far more difficult to address security problems further down the line,” the initiative’s website says. “In the end, the city would be left vulnerable.”

This vulnerability could expose critical infrastructure networks that control the water system, electrical grid and even traffic lights to cyber adversaries.

It’s currently believed several foreign governments, including China, Russia and Iran, have already infiltrated critical systems.

Although the White House last February issued voluntary guidelines for private sector companies to help secure their networks, a researcher with the group told The New York Times that it hasn’t really helped things thus far.

“What I found is that there are a lot of security problems — the situation is really bad — but I didn’t want to just point out problems without offering solutions,” said Cesar Cerrudo, chief technology officer at IOActive Labs.

Lawmakers have also failed to move on any substantial cybersecurity legislation to combat the growing threat of hackers by exchanging more data between the public and private sector.

Senate leaders have vowed action on a House-passed bill that would shield companies from legal liability when sharing cyber threat data with the government. But a small group of privacy-minded senators have expressed opposition to the bill, which could derail its chances.

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ISA presses for data to shape cyber security policy, encourages use of NIST framework

The Internet Security Alliance Monday encouraged the Department of Commerce to work with private sector organizations to determine what’s needed in terms of cost-effectiveness, incentives and prioritization to stimulate use of the NIST Framework.

Developed in response to a 2013 Executive Order from President Obama, the NIST Framework for Improving Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity was released in February 2014.Yet 15 months after the unveiling, ISA President Larry Clinton said in a Tuesday email correspondence with SCMagazine.com that “there has been no systematic work to provide the supports for Framework use that were also called for in the President’s Order.”

Without those supports, he noted, “it is unlikely that there will be substantial and sustained improvements in cyber security based on the Framework.”

Clinton added that, other than anecdotal self-reports, which he called “notoriously unreliable,” there is “no hard evidence that there have been any tangible improvements in security or what aspects of the Framework may have created any improvements.”

The ISA’s call to action came as a filing in response to a Request for Information (RFI) from the Commerce Department’s National Telecommunications and Infrastructure Agency (NTIA) asking what type of multi-stakeholder process was needed to move cyber security forward. Clinton, in a release, advocated “a systematic data driven analysis of our assumptions about the cost, benefits and incentives for cyber security” and noted that “NTIA has a golden opportunity to meet this need and we urge them to seize that opportunity.”

He recommended Commerce adopt a similar model created by the Department of Homeland Security for its STYX and TAXII information-sharing programs. “Both STYX and TAXII were pilot tested carefully by DHS before we went to broad implementation,” he said. “Our proposal lays out a similar model for Commerce so that we can make critical national cyber security decisions based on data, not assumptions.”

Clinton contended that “ISA’s proposal would leverage the Framework with the existing partnership structure established in the National Infrastructure Protection Plan to generate some real data upon which policy that truly effects security can be based.”

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Powerful typhoon does not deter Task Force Talon

ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, Guam – For Soldiers defending the skies over Guam, those same skies recently became the enemy as Typhoon Dolphin pounded the island of Guam on May 15 with sustained 100 mph winds and gusts of up to 125 mph.

Guam is home to Task Force Talon which has been defending the island from missile attack for the past two years with the U.S. Army’s first forward deployed Terminal High Altitude Area Defense battery. The task force is composed of Soldiers from air defense, signal, and infantry units that came together as a team with their U.S. Air Force counterparts to quickly evacuate critical equipment from the unit’s location on Site Armadillo in northwestern Guam.

The evacuation of mission critical equipment happened just hours before the typhoon struck. Task Force Talon Soldiers from Company B, 1st Battalion, 14th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, who are deployed from Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, provided convoy security. The convoy safely moved the equipment to storage locations maintained by the 36th Munitions and the 36th Maintenance Squadrons, 36th Maintenance Group, 36th Wing on Andersen Air Force Base.

“If not for the great support from the Air Force the successful evacuation of the mission critical equipment would not have been possible,” said 1st Sgt. Cedric Covington, first sergeant for Battery D, 2nd Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 11th ADA Brigade.

“We understand the important homeland defense mission that Task Force Talon executes and we try our best to support them anyway we can,” said U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Chandralean Lozada, the systems flight chief for the 36th Munitions Squadron.

The evacuation of the equipment was fortuitous, as the eye wall of the typhoon passed near Site Armadillo causing extensive damage to non-mission critical infrastructure and the surrounding vegetation.

“We had some minor damage to Site Armadillo, but were able to maintain security of sensitive items and materials throughout the typhoon without injury to any Soldiers,” said Capt. Dan Stinnett, commander, Company B, 1-14th Infantry Regiment, who led a small security force team that secured the site during the typhoon.

Within hours after the typhoon passed, Task Force Talon Soldiers were back on site clearing debris and repairing damage from the typhoon. Once the site was cleared, Soldiers from Battery D, 2nd ADA, who are deployed from Fort Bliss, Texas, quickly emplaced their THAAD equipment and resumed their defense of Guam mission.

“As bad as the typhoon was, it brought out the best in the Task Force’s Soldiers,” said Sgt. Maj. Joel Gutierrez, sergeant major, Task Force Talon, 94th Army Air and Missile Defense Command. “The Soldiers worked extremely hard to clear the site of mission critical equipment and then quickly reestablished the site despite the damage from the typhoon.”

As destructive as Typhoon Dolphin was, it helped to build strong bonds between U.S. Army and Air Force personnel on Guam.

“The support from Team Andersen was tremendous,” said Lt. Col. Jefferey Slown, commander, Task Force Talon, 94th AAMDC. “It is an honor to work with the many great professionals that make up the joint community here on Guam.”

Typhoon season has not even officially started on Guam, but this is the second typhoon that Task Force Talon has had to endure in the past two months. The strong storms that strike Guam can be destructive, but it will never break the confidence Task Force Talon Soldiers have in their training and the support from the joint community on Andersen AFB.

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Cybergy Labs Names Terry DiVittorio as Vice President, Cyber Operations

ENGLEWOOD, Colo.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Cybergy Labs, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cybergy Holdings, Inc. (OTCQB: CYBG), is pleased to announce that Terrence “Terry” DiVittorio has been hired as its new Vice President, Cyber Operations. Terry is a United States Air Force decorated Gulf War veteran and former Director of Cyber Operations for Computer Sciences Corporation’s (CSC’s) contracts with the Department of Defense (DoD) and United States Cyber Command (USCYBERCOM).

Terry will be responsible for helping Cybergy Labs and the larger family of Cybergy Holdings companies develop their cybersecurity business services and solutions through technology-enabled platforms such as the proprietary SmartFile electronic tagging system and RazorThreat Vision™ real-time monitoring software application. He will also help the Cybergy family of companies expand their focus into helping ensure the cybersecurity of the nation’s critical infrastructure with an emphasis on the electrical grid and utility sector.

Terry brings a very distinguished and multifaceted career as a cybersecurity and IT professional stretching back nearly 30 years with technical, operational, and management experience in federal and commercial contracting. He is a career cyber operator and subject matter expert in enterprise risk management and organizational security program development, implementation, and management. Terry also is a former Senior Non-Commissioned Officer in the United States Air Force and a veteran of the first Gulf War, receiving multiple medals and awards including the Air Force Meritorious Service Medal.

“I am delighted to bring Terry onboard our team,” said Mark Gray, Chairman and CEO of Cybergy Partners, itself a subsidiary of Cybergy Holdings, Inc. “The extent and breadth of his professional experience in cybersecurity and his enthusiasm for this vitally important topic, as well as his team-oriented, positive attitude make Terry a tremendous new asset to the Cybergy family.”

In his previous job as Vice President, Risk Assurance Services for Knowledge Consulting Group (KCG), Terry oversaw one of the company’s cybersecurity divisions with shared managerial responsibilities across the entire company’s portfolio of governmental and commercial clients.

In his work for CSC, Terry managed the cyber-operations portfolio for the company’s DoD and USCYBERCOM customers, helping design and develop emerging and enabling cyber operations and related network defense capabilities.

Terry’s other professional experience includes a senior executive role at Booz Allen Hamilton, where he was responsible for cybersecurity business in the law enforcement and intelligence community markets.

“We are investing in protecting our nation’s critical infrastructure, and Terry is an important part of that strategy with his background in cyber operations and risk management with great groups such as Booz Allen Hamilton, USCYBERCOM, and CSC,” said Wyly Wade, Chief Technology Officer for Cybergy Partners and Cybergy Labs, “His insight in bundling cybersecurity services with our SmartFile and RazorThreat technologies as well as our managed security services represents a strategic win-win for us and our customers.”

In addition to helping grow the company’s market for these products and services, Terry will help Cybergy develop and refine its focus on ensuring the cybersecurity of our nation’s electrical grid and smart grid platforms. He will be to do this, in part, by leveraging member company New West Technologies’ long history of providing specialized solutions in areas such as integrated smart grid operations, clean energy technologies, and distributed generation.

“What really attracted me to Cybergy was the investment they’ve made and continue to make in leading edge cybersecurity solutions and technologies including SmartFile and RazorThreat and the significant benefits they offer to private and public sector cybersecurity challenges.” said Terry. “And I am particularly excited to help the Cybergy family further its mission and commitment to advance its cybersecurity platforms to help secure and safeguard the nation’s electrical grid and utility sector as key components of our nation’s critical infrastructure.”

About Cybergy Holdings, Inc.

Cybergy Holdings, Inc., is a national leader in cybersecurity, smart grid technologies, renewable energy, and mission-oriented government services. Headquartered in Englewood, Colorado, Cybergy Holdings’ team of approximately 100 employees delivers innovative technical and management services through its 3 divisions: Cybergy Labs, an award-winning developer of specialized cybersecurity software applications, including SmartFile; New West Technologies, which was founded in 1996 and provides clean, smart, and reliable energy solutions and is a 5 time winner of the Inc. 500/5000 fastest growing private companies in America; and Primetrix, which serves U.S. Federal Government contractor firms with contract procurement, compliance, and growth services.

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