Case Study: ELES strengthens substation cybersecurity and reliability with SEL OT SDN

ELES secures nearly 10 substations with SEL

ELES, the transmission and distribution system operator for Slovenia, sought a secure and high-performance Ethernet networking solution for the station bus at their new Cirkovce substation. The challenge was to protect critical, time-sensitive protection communications from cyber threats while ensuring they always met a strict 3-millisecond performance requirement, even during a network failure. This led them to partner with Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories (SEL) to evaluate its OT SDN solution.

Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories implemented its operational technology software-defined networking (OT SDN) solution, which uses a deny-by-default approach and pre-defined communication paths to provide enhanced cybersecurity and deterministic performance. The solution was a success, giving ELES confidence in their system's security and resilience. As a result, ELES has expanded the use of SEL's OT SDN to nearly ten new substations, trusts that critical messages will be delivered on time, and has become a regional leader, with other European utilities consulting them on their implementation.

ELES