Cyber resilience in renewable microgrids: A review of standards, challenges, and solutions

Increasing penetration of power electronic-based renewable energy generation resources, decreasing total rotational inertia, and bidirectional power flow have changed the concept of smart microgrid stability and operational requirements. The stability of low inertia and fast dynamic renewable smart microgrids is highly dependent on reliable and feasible interoperability between their components. Communication infrastructure is responsible for providing this interoperability within the specified time horizon, considering confidentiality, integrity, availability, and authenticity of the exchanged information. This makes smart microgrids vulnerable to cyber-attacks. Attackers attempt to disrupt microgrid operations by manipulating transmitted data or attacking the physical system. This paper presents a systematic review of standards, challenges, and solutions for renewable smart microgrid cyber resiliency, focusing on communication technologies, protocols, intelligent electrical devices, and renewable energy generation sources. It provides a detailed cyber threat investigation, including targeted components, methods of execution, provided solutions, and attack destructive results. Then, with deep practical and theoretical knowledge of renewable smart microgrid cyber-attack vulnerabilities, this review recommends several practical solutions for cyber resiliency and proposes potential future studies.