Overview
- An analysis cited by the Washington Post reports many U.S. utilities rely on solar and battery inverters tied to Chinese firms, which researchers warn could be manipulated to trigger outages.
- Strider Technologies found about 85% of surveyed utilities use such equipment, with the survey covering companies representing roughly 12% of U.S. installed capacity.
- Reuters reported in May that “rogue communication devices” were found in some Chinese-made inverters, raising concerns that hackers could bypass firewalls and cause blackouts.
- More than 50 House Republicans urged the Commerce Department to block future imports of Chinese equipment used in critical infrastructure, specifically citing utility-scale solar and battery inverters.
- The Energy Department says it continually assesses risk and urges careful procurement, while Chinese officials reject the allegations as unfounded.