EXCLUSIVE: Neo-Nazi domestic terrorists are targeting critical power stations with guns and explosives in co-ordinated attacks as they seek to destroy the American way of life, watchdog warns
- Physical attacks on the US power grid rose by 71% last year, with a dramatic spike in plots by white supremacists intent on bringing down American society
- Hits on power stations have resulted in counties losing power for days, with one elderly woman dying as a result, as well as causing millions of dollars in damage
- There are now fears co-ordinated plots could be backed by hostile foreign states such as China, Russia or Iran, resulting in a cataclysmic fallout across the US
Neo-Nazi terrorists are targeting critical power stations with guns and explosives as they seek to hasten the end of American society, a US energy chief has told DailyMail.com.
The US has been hit by a rise in ballistic threats on its energy sector this year as saboteurs share information online on how to inflict maximum damage, according to Manny Cancel of the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC).
Previous attacks have resulted in entire counties losing power for days, with one death recorded as a result.
But there are now fears co-ordinated plots - possibly sponsored by hostile foreign actors from China, Russia or Iran - could result in catastrophic damage.
Cancel, who is in charge of the team that analyzes security threats within NERC, said: 'All the data indicates this trend is going in the wrong direction.'
![Physical attacks on the US power grid rose by 71 percent last year, according to data from the Electricity Information Sharing and Analysis Center (E-ISAC)](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/10/27/21/77080201-12677557-image-a-29_1698439929445.jpg)
Physical attacks on the US power grid rose by 71 percent last year, according to data from the Electricity Information Sharing and Analysis Center (E-ISAC)
![Sarah Beth Clendaniel, 27, of Maryland, was arrested for her part in an alleged neo-Nazi plot to 'completely destroy' the power grid in the predominantly black city of Baltimore](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/12/08/15/77055411-12677557-Sarah_Beth_Clendaniel_27_of_Maryland_was_arrested_for_her_part_i-a-6_1702051095046.jpg)
Sarah Beth Clendaniel, 27, of Maryland, was arrested for her part in an alleged neo-Nazi plot to 'completely destroy' the power grid in the predominantly black city of Baltimore
![Her co-conspirator, Brandon Russell, 28, of Florida, is a founder of the neo-Nazi group Atomwaffen Division (AWD) and has a long history of plots to attack US infrastructure, according to a criminal complaint filed against him](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/12/08/15/77055413-12677557-Her_co_conspirator_Brandon_Russell_34_of_Florida_is_a_founder_of-a-12_1702051098067.jpg)
Her co-conspirator, Brandon Russell, 28, of Florida, is a founder of the neo-Nazi group Atomwaffen Division (AWD) and has a long history of plots to attack US infrastructure, according to a criminal complaint filed against him
Smaller substations are the most common targets as they are less well protected, but fears are growing of a potentially cataclysmic fallout amid a growing number of plots against interstate power hubs and even nuclear reactors, Cancel said.
Physical attacks on the US power grid rose by 71 percent last year, according to data from the Electricity Information Sharing and Analysis Center (E-ISAC), of which Cancel is president and CEO.
E-ISAC is a division of NERC, which oversees grid security in the US, Canada and the northern portion of Baja California, Mexico.
Just last week, a former Marine pleaded guilty on a charge connected to a neo-Nazi plot to attack US energy infrastructure, hatched over three years at a military camp in North Carolina.
Liam Collins, 24, was accused of stealing military gear and delivering them to co-conspirators who planned to use them for assaults on power stations.
His conviction comes after a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) threat assessment published last month warned that domestic terrorists have 'increasingly called for physical attacks on critical infrastructure this year' in the belief that they 'would have cascading impacts on US industries and the American way of life'.
The growing threat from the far right is attributed to the growth of 'accelerationism' - an 'ideology that seeks to destabilize society and trigger a race war', according to the DHS.
Indeed, a report published by The George Washington University in September last year noted the number of white supremacist plots targeting energy systems had 'dramatically increased' since 2016.
The study found 13 individuals with far-right links had been arrested and charged in federal court with planning attacks on the energy sector in that period, with 11 of these having been charged since 2020.
Cancel said the majority of attacks involved gunmen shooting at substations and noted a growing technical knowledge among groups on which types of equipment to target to cause maximum damage.
He also noted instances of small explosives being planted and the potential of drones to drop or plant an incendiary device.
![Former Marine Liam Collins, 24, pleaded guilty on a charge connected to a neo-Nazi plot to attack US energy infrastructure, hatched over three years at a military camp in North Carolina](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/12/08/15/77056323-12677557-Former_Marine_Liam_Collins_24_pleaded_guilty_on_a_charge_connect-a-7_1702051095047.jpg)
Former Marine Liam Collins, 24, pleaded guilty on a charge connected to a neo-Nazi plot to attack US energy infrastructure, hatched over three years at a military camp in North Carolina
![Neo-Nazi affiliate Beau Daniel Merryman, 21, of Jefferson, Texas, pleaded guilty to distributing information related to constructing explosive devices to target critical infrastructure](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/12/08/15/77056339-12677557-Neo_Nazi_affiliate_Beau_Daniel_Merryman_21_of_Jefferson_Texas_pl-a-11_1702051097094.jpg)
Neo-Nazi affiliate Beau Daniel Merryman, 21, of Jefferson, Texas, pleaded guilty to distributing information related to constructing explosive devices to target critical infrastructure
![William Garfield Bilbrough IV, 20 (circled in red), of Maryland, was sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy charges related to a plot to attack energy infrastructure as part of the white supremacist group The Base](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/10/27/21/36608536-12677557-William_Garfield_Bilbrough_IV_20_circled_in_red_of_Maryland_was_-a-40_1698440334827.jpg)
William Garfield Bilbrough IV, 20 (circled in red), of Maryland, was sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy charges related to a plot to attack energy infrastructure as part of the white supremacist group The Base
E-ISAC recorded 4,493 attacks on energy infrastructure between 2020 and 2022, according to confidential analysis first leaked to The Wall Street Journal.
Of these, 97 percent resulted in 'no disruption of service', with the remaining 3 percent resulting in 'varying levels of grid impacts'.
One of the most significant came in December 2022, when an attack on two electric substations in Moore County, North Carolina, left 45,000 customers without power for several days.
An elderly woman died as a direct result of the outage, a death that the medical examiner ruled a homicide.
No suspects have been apprehended in the case and the motives for the attack remain unknown.
Some incidents are not ideologically motivated, such as the 2022 Christmas Day attack on four substations in Washington State that left thousands of families without power.
The two suspects arrested, Matthew Greenwood, 32, and Jeremy Crahan, 40, of Puyallup, Washington, told officers that they had carried out the attack to aid a burglary they carried out later that night.
The George Washington University study found 19 cases of jihadist terrorists arrested and charged with plotting attacks on critical infrastructure in the US.
But these more commonly target transportation systems or other places where large amounts of people gather, with the intent of inflicting maximum human casualties.
The damage to infrastructure itself is largely incidental.
While the fallout of attacks on the energy sector have thus far been localized, authorities are concerned that more coordinated plots could result in nationwide catastrophe in future.
Some have already been foiled. A plot concocted by three neo-Nazis at a gun rally in Richmond, Virginia, in 2019, threatened to 'kick off the economic collapse' of the US by taking out critical infrastructure across the country.
Ian Mitch, senior policy researcher at think tank RAND Corporation, told DailyMail.com that there may be growing fears over terror groups enlisting those with 'insider access, who may know more about system wide vulnerabilities…or if more capable groups conduct coordinated attacks against multiple assets at the same time'.
Cancel said a successful attack on an interstate transmission substation, which he described as 'the heart and brain of the electric grid', could have a 'severe impact' across the US.
He conceded that a state-sponsored attack by hostile actors such as China, Russia or Iran was 'not above the realm of possibility', but added there was no evidence that any confirmed incident had been influenced by any nation state.
In response to the growing threat to critical power stations, the Department of Energy has announced $38million to modernize the electricity grid, part of which includes funding for infrastructure and cybersecurity protections.
Meanwhile, legislators in North Carolina, South Carolina and Arizona have introduced bills that would require 24-hour security at substations or toughen penalties for damaging them.
Ultimately, however, both Mitch and Cancel say it is impossible to protect all of the 55,000 substations across the US, many of which are privately owned and situated in remote areas.