President Donald Trump declared a national emergency Wednesday over what the White House described as a growing foreign threat to the nation’s electric grid, directing the federal government to restrict potentially dangerous foreign-made equipment from entering or remaining in critical parts of the U.S. bulk-power system.
Executive Order 14420, signed Aug. 26, says foreign actors are increasingly capable of exploiting vulnerabilities in the American electric grid at a time when data centers, artificial intelligence, advanced manufacturing and defense production are placing greater demands on the country’s power infrastructure.
Trump said the threat extends beyond traditional supply-chain concerns, warning that foreign-produced electrical equipment could contain digital vulnerabilities or even built-in backdoors capable of allowing remote access by hostile governments.
“The rapid growth of advanced manufacturing, data centers, artificial intelligence, and defense production has increased the Nation’s dependence on abundant, reliable electricity,” the order states.
The executive order gives the secretary of energy broad authority to prohibit the acquisition, importation, transfer or installation of certain foreign-produced bulk-power equipment when federal officials determine that the equipment is tied to a “Covered Foreign Entity” and poses an unacceptable national security risk.
Those risks include sabotage, unauthorized access, malicious remote activity, supply disruptions or potentially catastrophic consequences for the nation’s critical infrastructure and economy.
The order also reaches equipment already installed in the United States.
The energy secretary may require foreign-manufactured or foreign-operated equipment to be identified, isolated, monitored, secured, disconnected, replaced or removed if officials determine it presents an unacceptable threat. The administration must consider electric reliability, public safety and the availability of secure replacement equipment before ordering major systems disconnected or removed.
That provision could prove significant for utilities and power producers that already rely on equipment manufactured overseas.
Trump’s order covers a broad range of systems used at substations, generating stations and control rooms, including transformers, grid-connected inverters, battery energy storage systems, backup generators, circuit breakers, industrial control systems and other sophisticated electronic equipment.
Associated software, firmware, remote-access capabilities and maintenance systems may also fall under the order when federal agencies determine they present a security risk.
The order defines a “Covered Foreign Entity” to include countries or entities controlled by governments already subject to U.S. arms embargoes or sanctions, along with other foreign actors the administration determines are engaged in conduct detrimental to U.S. national security or foreign policy.
Trump also directed the Department of Energy to begin identifying foreign-made electrical equipment already in the United States that could pose a risk to the grid and develop recommendations for locating, monitoring, isolating or replacing that equipment.
The energy secretary has 120 days to publish implementing regulations as needed under the order.
The administration is also moving to change how the federal government buys energy infrastructure.
Within 180 days, the energy secretary must recommend revisions to federal acquisition rules designed to place greater emphasis on national security considerations while prioritizing U.S.-manufactured energy infrastructure. The Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council would then have 90 days to consider proposed changes.
The move comes as the federal government increasingly treats the power grid not simply as domestic infrastructure but as a national security asset.
A successful cyberattack, remote shutdown or coordinated supply interruption involving critical electrical equipment could affect military installations, hospitals, communications networks, emergency services and the wider economy.
Trump said those risks justified invoking emergency powers under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and National Emergencies Act.
The order does not impose an across-the-board prohibition on all foreign electrical equipment. Instead, it creates a process allowing the Energy Department and national security agencies to identify specific countries, companies, products and transactions considered dangerous.
The government can also establish a list of pre-qualified vendors and equipment cleared for future transactions, while retaining the authority to reconsider those approvals if new security concerns emerge.
The executive order represents another step by the Trump administration toward tying domestic energy production and manufacturing directly to national security.
For utilities across the country, including those serving Maine, the practical impact will depend heavily on which foreign suppliers and equipment the Department of Energy identifies through regulations expected in the coming months.
But the direction from Washington is clear: when it comes to the infrastructure that keeps America’s lights on, the administration intends to treat foreign dependence as a potential security vulnerability rather than simply an economic question.
