A document published by the European Commission on strengthening the EU’s economic security cites dependence on Chinese solar inverters as an example of high-risk dependence. It adds that the commission has plans to address such risks under its cybersecurity framework.
A safety doctrine published by the European Commission has identified solar inverters from Chinese suppliers as a high-risk dependency.
The documenton how to strengthen the EU’s economic security, outlines how the bloc plans to respond to growing external economic threats. It says the commission’s immediate focus will be on six high-risk priority areas, which have been identified as reducing strategic dependencies for goods and services; attracting safe investments in the EU; supporting Europe’s defence, space and key industrial industries; securing EU leadership in key technologies; protecting sensitive data and shielding Europe’s critical infrastructure.
The communication then specifically highlights the dependence on solar inverters as an example of a security risk due to supplier concentration, cyber manipulation risks, access to network-relevant operational data and the possibility of actors infiltrating supply chains. Today, About 80% of European PV systems depend on Chinese inverters.
The commission plans to address these risks through a coordinated assessment under the NIS2 Directive, the EU’s cybersecurity framework, to be completed next year. It says this work will include mitigation measures aimed at strengthening preparedness and identifying vulnerabilities using certification and standardization under the Cyber Resilience Act and non-price criteria under the Net Zero Industry Act.
“The Commission will monitor market developments and seek to prevent or limit risky investments,” the document said. “The Commission will continue to assess the role of foreign subsidies that could distort the level playing field in solar markets, in particular through subsidized imports.”
Mainstream semiconductors, battery electric vehicles, key components for drones and detection equipment at EU borders are identified in the communication as other high-risk dependency areas.
The European Solar Manufacturing Council (ESMC) has issued a statement saying it strongly supports the strategic shift outlined in the document.
The council said it particularly welcomes the council’s intention to “support the development of trusted suppliers of critical sub-components in the EU and in trusted third countries so that there are viable alternatives” and reiterated that European and other Western manufacturers remain at the forefront of technology, with the production capacity to meet all European demand.
ESMC is calling for a series of actions, including the establishment of an EU-level whitelist of trusted inverter suppliers, based on cybersecurity and jurisdictional risk criteria, which is integrated into NIS2, the ICT Supply Chain Toolbox, NZIA articles and all relevant EU Network Codes. It also says EU member states should be given the option to refuse grid connection to inverter hardware from high-risk suppliers.
ESMC Secretary General Christoph Podewils added that the doctrine should act as a wake-up call for member states. “They must now work to massively reduce dependencies and cyber risks,” he added.
The council has established an Inverter, Storage and Energy Management Systems Forum, open to ESMC members and eligible Western non-members, which it says will work with grid operators, energy security agencies, standardization bodies and other stakeholders to advance Europe’s digital and energy resilience.
In May, ESMC published a warning that European energy sovereignty is at risk due to the unregulated and remote-controlled capabilities of solar inverters from high-risk, non-European manufacturers. In September, the Czech Cyber Security Agency said that Chinese solar inverters in small power plants pose a potential security threat.
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