Foreign components in Danish energy infrastructure probed
According to the organisation Green Power Denmark, mysterious components have been discovered in parts imported from abroad for energy infrastructure. Similar incidents involving inverters imported from China for solar farms were noted in the United States.
The Technical Director of Green Power Denmark, Joergen Christensen, did not reveal which country the suspicious parts found in Denmark originated from. The head of the organisation stated that he could not provide such information due to the ongoing investigation.
It concerns printed circuit boards that were supposed to be part of components for the energy supply - admitted Christensen, as quoted by the "Berlingske" newspaper.
Following this discovery, collaboration between the Danish organisation and the foreign supplier has been suspended until the issue is resolved.
Suspicious elements in components from China
Christensen noted that Danish legislation does not require examining imported critical infrastructure components for potential sabotage threats, but many companies have outsourced such tasks to external partners.
The "Berlingske" newspaper reported that an increasing portion of Denmark's energy comes from solar panels. In the event of a failure, matters may unfold like they did at the end of April in southern Europe, where a blackout occurred.
As explained by Reuters, inverters, mainly manufactured in China, are used worldwide to connect solar panels and wind turbines to the energy grid. They are also found in batteries, heat pumps, and electric vehicle chargers.
As reported by the Reuters agency last week, transmitters were discovered during inspections of critical infrastructure facilities in the US. According to two anonymous government sources, such devices can destabilise the power grid and might even cause a power outage.
