The Dutch government said it remains vigilant about possible threats from cyber security from solar players. However, it minimized the risk of hidden hardware components in inverters and said that these devices would be ‘easy to detect’ by the Dutch authorities.
The Dutch Minister for Climate Policy and Green Growth, Sophie Hermans, announced during a parliamentary debate that the Dutch government intends to increase vigilance on inverters used in PV systems throughout the country.
The statement came as an answer to a parliamentary question submitted by Henri Bontenbal from the Conservative Party of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), which expressed concern about hidden communication equipment in Chinese inverters, as recently reported by Reuters. “This report is based on anonymous sources and does not indicate who conducted the investigation or how,” said Hermans. “Moreover, it does not indicate which products or suppliers were involved.”
However, the minister also said that suns of sun bears can fall under the scope of the AIVD, a agency run by the government Responsible for combating domestic and foreign threats for national security, especially if Inverters are able to considerably disturb the transmission, distribution and production of electricity.
“The potential risks of components without papers in inverters depend on various factors, including the total available power of affected parties and the resilience of the electricity grid during a possible malfunction,” she added and noted that the risk of hidden hardware components in inverters is very unlikely and “Easily detectable” by the Dutch authorities. “Nevertheless, the government takes such signals very seriously. The national and European legislation has been tightened because of the increase in digitization and the use of smart equipment, such as inverters.”
Hermans remembered that too the Red 3.3 Clauses of the EU Radio Equipment Directive (Red) Will take effect in August 2025, with restrictive requirements for all wirelessly connected devices, including solar yellowers.
On the European market, on the other hand, it is already forbidden to record functionalities in secret, both for software and hardware, which are not described in the technical documentation. ‘It is forbidden to offer products that contain ‘hidden’ functionalities for the remotely switching of devices on or out, “the minister explained.”These requirements also apply to products from a manufacturer that is located outside the EU as soon as these products are offered on the European market. “
Respond to the recent legislation of Lithuania that blocks Chinese manufacturers to remotely gain access to the country’s solar, wind and storage facilities, Hermans said The government will collaborate with its EU partners to assess whether such regulations offer “added value” for the European market.
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