Solar PV hardware opens door to Chinese interference in German power supply – security agency

A new law planned for the better integration of solar energy sources into Germany’s electricity system bears the risk that foreign powers gain control over relevant parts of the country’s energy supply, the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) has warned. Many of the inverters for solar panels used in German homes are made by producers from China and the Asian country’s government or other actors might be able to directly access the devices that are connected to the internet and influence the electricity system, a BSI spokesperson told newspaper Welt am Sonntag, warning of a “substantial risk potential.”

The new law currently planned by Germany’s outgoing coalition government aims at achieving a better balance of the grid at times of excessive solar power feed-in by taking roof-mounted installations offline. According to the newspaper, the BSI has been alarmed by a series of incidents around the world with solar PV inverters by Chinese producer Deye, which in recent months have caused an uproar among users after the devices were shut down remotely and left their owners without electricity.

The head of the German Federation of Energy and Water Industries (BDEW), Kerstin Andreae, said the BSI’s warning confirmed the urgency of getting the reform of Germany’s related Energy Industry Act (EnWG) across the line before the snap elections in late February. “The draft contains important measures for cushioning PV feed-in peaks and thus for stabilising the grid.” She stressed that Germany must implement its national smart meter roll-out to make grid management more flexible. The smart meters are supposed to improve control over the country’s electricity system but consecutive German governments for years have failed to ensure a comprehensive roll-out of the digital meters.

A large share of Germany’s installed generation capacity today consists of solar PV units and on days with lots of sunshine and low demand, for example during holidays or weekends, power production can exceed demand significantly. Driven by a massive drop in prices in recent years, solar capacity continues to grow at a fast pace, with many installations owned by private households. As the excess power cannot yet be efficiently stored or re-distributed, there is a risk of grid overload and blackouts. Regulators can counter this with so-called brownouts, planned and temporary local or regional power cuts that help balance the grid.

The new law could reduce the need for such drastic interventions by steering the feed-in of smaller solar power units more efficiently through the inverters. As most of the world’s inverters are manufactured by Chinese companies including Deye, Huawei, or Sungrow, entities with control over these companies could interfere in these procedures. Many wind power turbines used in Germany also contain parts made by Chinese suppliers, leading industry representatives to warn against possible interferences in this technology as well.