Energy Secretary Ed Miliband is facing urgent calls to halt the rollout of renewable energy in the UK after Chinese "kill switches" were discovered hidden in American solar farms.
Andrew Bowie, the Shadow Energy Minister, has urged an "immediate pause" on the green energy programme to review whether UK solar plants are also at risk.
Components found in the US included cellular radios capable of switching off equipment remotely, raising serious concerns about grid security.
The components were discovered inside power inverters manufactured by unnamed Chinese companies, which are crucial links between solar or wind farms and the power system.
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband is facing urgent calls to halt the rollout of renewable energy in the UK
PA
One source said that compromising such equipment would give Beijing the ability to inflict blackouts on the West, claiming it would create "a built-in way to physically destroy the grid".
China has dismissed the claims as a smear, but the discovery has sounded alarm bells within the US government and is likely to prompt a similar scramble in Britain.
Bowie said the "worrying revelations" should spark serious concern for Miliband and called for an urgent investigation.
"We were already aware of concerns being raised by the Ministry of Defence and the security and intelligence services surrounding possible monitoring technology on Chinese-built wind turbines but given the dominance of China in solar, these developments are equally if not even more worrying," he said.
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Andrew Bowie, the Shadow Energy minister, has urged an 'immediate pause' on the green energy programme to review whether UK solar plants are also at risk
PA
Components found in the US included cellular radios capable of switching off equipment remotely, raising serious concerns about grid security
PABowie added that "Ed Miliband's Made in China transition clean power at the expense of everything else is a threat to our national security".
An industry source said British solar farms use inverters from various sources, including Chinese, American, German and Israeli suppliers.
A UK Government spokesman said: "We would never let anything get in the way of our national security, and while we would not comment on individual cases, our energy sector is subject to the highest levels of national security scrutiny."
Chris Hewett, chief executive of Solar Energy UK, said affected inverters "could be replaced rapidly" if found, adding that solar energy helps "wean the UK off reliance on fossil fuels from unstable regimes".
China has dismissed the claims as a smear
Reuters
Chinese companies dominate the market for power inverters, with firms like Huawei and Sungrow controlling more than half the market in 2023, according to Wood Mackenzie research.
The European Solar Manufacturing Council estimates that more than 200 gigawatts of European solar power capacity relies on Chinese-made inverters.
"This means Europe has effectively surrendered remote control of a vast portion of its electricity infrastructure," said Christoph Podewils, the industry group's secretary general.
Earlier this year, Ministry of Defence officials raised concerns about a Chinese firm contracted to provide turbines to a Scottish wind farm.
