UK: Fears China could 'switch off' wind farm off coast of Aberdeen
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The Government is coming under renewed pressure over Chinese involvement in a major North Sea wind project.
The Green Volt North Sea farm, due to be Europe’s largest floating offshore wind farm, is a joint venture between a Japanese and an Italian-Norwegian company.
The Treasury has reportedly selected Chinese firm Mingyang Smart Energy to supply wind turbines.
The wind farm will be about 46 miles off the coast of Aberdeenshire and will generate up to 560MW of electricity. The firm says it is aiming for the plant to be operational in 2029.
There are concerns that the Chinese state could switch off the power once the wind farm is operational, or that the platforms could be used as spy sensors.
Liberal Democrat MP for Edinburgh West Christine Jardine said the Government needed to ensure the software could not be accessed remotely or be at risk of being switched off by others.
She said the Government must follow “rigorous processes”, adding: “That must include an assessment of any opportunities for remote access to the turbines, as the software will normally remain in control of the manufacturers, even once commissioned, which would leave them vulnerable to being switched off. We need local control."
Energy minister Kerry McCarthy said the department had processes in place to ensure any risk in the project was minimised.
Ms McCarthy said: “We have discussions with a wide range, variety, of international investors, but we do absolutely recognise this needs to be balanced against national security implications, and that is something that we work on constantly across Government.”
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[UK] Chancellor Rachel Reeves flew to the country in January to meet the country’s leaders, and Foreign Secretary David Lammy will meet his Chinese counterpart this week.
This is despite concerns about China’s human rights record, and potential for them to use backdoors in Britain’s energy infrastructure to blackmail a future government.
[...]
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System shared this topic on
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The Government is coming under renewed pressure over Chinese involvement in a major North Sea wind project.
The Green Volt North Sea farm, due to be Europe’s largest floating offshore wind farm, is a joint venture between a Japanese and an Italian-Norwegian company.
The Treasury has reportedly selected Chinese firm Mingyang Smart Energy to supply wind turbines.
The wind farm will be about 46 miles off the coast of Aberdeenshire and will generate up to 560MW of electricity. The firm says it is aiming for the plant to be operational in 2029.
There are concerns that the Chinese state could switch off the power once the wind farm is operational, or that the platforms could be used as spy sensors.
Liberal Democrat MP for Edinburgh West Christine Jardine said the Government needed to ensure the software could not be accessed remotely or be at risk of being switched off by others.
She said the Government must follow “rigorous processes”, adding: “That must include an assessment of any opportunities for remote access to the turbines, as the software will normally remain in control of the manufacturers, even once commissioned, which would leave them vulnerable to being switched off. We need local control."
Energy minister Kerry McCarthy said the department had processes in place to ensure any risk in the project was minimised.
Ms McCarthy said: “We have discussions with a wide range, variety, of international investors, but we do absolutely recognise this needs to be balanced against national security implications, and that is something that we work on constantly across Government.”
[...]
[UK] Chancellor Rachel Reeves flew to the country in January to meet the country’s leaders, and Foreign Secretary David Lammy will meet his Chinese counterpart this week.
This is despite concerns about China’s human rights record, and potential for them to use backdoors in Britain’s energy infrastructure to blackmail a future government.
[...]
Why would they do that?
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Why would they do that?
WW3
Why is Britain so technologically inept that they can't imagine taking back control?
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WW3
Why is Britain so technologically inept that they can't imagine taking back control?
There's no WW3 afaik
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WW3
Why is Britain so technologically inept that they can't imagine taking back control?
Remember the last time Britain imagined taking back control?
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The Government is coming under renewed pressure over Chinese involvement in a major North Sea wind project.
The Green Volt North Sea farm, due to be Europe’s largest floating offshore wind farm, is a joint venture between a Japanese and an Italian-Norwegian company.
The Treasury has reportedly selected Chinese firm Mingyang Smart Energy to supply wind turbines.
The wind farm will be about 46 miles off the coast of Aberdeenshire and will generate up to 560MW of electricity. The firm says it is aiming for the plant to be operational in 2029.
There are concerns that the Chinese state could switch off the power once the wind farm is operational, or that the platforms could be used as spy sensors.
Liberal Democrat MP for Edinburgh West Christine Jardine said the Government needed to ensure the software could not be accessed remotely or be at risk of being switched off by others.
She said the Government must follow “rigorous processes”, adding: “That must include an assessment of any opportunities for remote access to the turbines, as the software will normally remain in control of the manufacturers, even once commissioned, which would leave them vulnerable to being switched off. We need local control."
Energy minister Kerry McCarthy said the department had processes in place to ensure any risk in the project was minimised.
Ms McCarthy said: “We have discussions with a wide range, variety, of international investors, but we do absolutely recognise this needs to be balanced against national security implications, and that is something that we work on constantly across Government.”
[...]
[UK] Chancellor Rachel Reeves flew to the country in January to meet the country’s leaders, and Foreign Secretary David Lammy will meet his Chinese counterpart this week.
This is despite concerns about China’s human rights record, and potential for them to use backdoors in Britain’s energy infrastructure to blackmail a future government.
[...]
Sounds a bit like fear mongering
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Sounds a bit like fear mongering
How is wanting local control fear mongering?
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Sounds a bit like fear mongering
China (and Russia) have actively been sabotaging European infrastructure as we have seen in the recent couple of years. It would be a bad idea, therefore, to become dependent on foreign tech that can be controlled by one these countries.
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China (and Russia) have actively been sabotaging European infrastructure as we have seen in the recent couple of years. It would be a bad idea, therefore, to become dependent on foreign tech that can be controlled by one these countries.
China (and Russia) have actively been sabotaging European infrastructure as we have seen in the recent couple of years
Out of the loop here. What happened?
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China (and Russia) have actively been sabotaging European infrastructure as we have seen in the recent couple of years
Out of the loop here. What happened?
There have been umpteen reports about Russia sabotaging underwater power/telecom cables:
https://news.google.com/search?q=russia cable&hl=en-GB&gl=GB&ceid=GB%3Aen
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There have been umpteen reports about Russia sabotaging underwater power/telecom cables:
https://news.google.com/search?q=russia cable&hl=en-GB&gl=GB&ceid=GB%3Aen
And how is china involved here?
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WW3
Why is Britain so technologically inept that they can't imagine taking back control?
Ftr, iirc, 80% of German offshore wind farms are part-owned by Chinese corporations too and it's not completely clear how many of these Chinese owners can remotely turn off the turbines.
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And how is china involved here?
Fair enough. Though at least two of the ships were under Chinese flags (ZH and HK) -- although that may not mean much. Next: It's not exactly "infrastructure", but it appears likely that Northvolt was sabotaged by a Chinese manufacturer of production machinery. And from what I can tell, China supports Russian war efforts, in a bid to make the case for their One China-Taiwan takeover.
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Fair enough. Though at least two of the ships were under Chinese flags (ZH and HK) -- although that may not mean much. Next: It's not exactly "infrastructure", but it appears likely that Northvolt was sabotaged by a Chinese manufacturer of production machinery. And from what I can tell, China supports Russian war efforts, in a bid to make the case for their One China-Taiwan takeover.
China supports Russian war efforts, in a bid to make the case for their One China-Taiwan takeover.
In official statements China has been against the Russian invasion, and that is more than can be said for the US currently.
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China supports Russian war efforts, in a bid to make the case for their One China-Taiwan takeover.
In official statements China has been against the Russian invasion, and that is more than can be said for the US currently.
That's some funky whataboutism. I don't think I talked about the hostility of the new US admin. Or did I?
The current US admin would be a very low bar to clear, to boot. But afaik, even they are currently not buying a bunch Russian gas or filing up the spots left vacant through EU sanctions in the Russian market, neither are they delivering drones and electronics to Russia. Russia is basically a big dumb gas station at this point (granted, they have steel and Uranium too) -- they wouldn't stand a chance to fight this war on their own, without ambivalent/opportunist/supporting forces.
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That's some funky whataboutism. I don't think I talked about the hostility of the new US admin. Or did I?
The current US admin would be a very low bar to clear, to boot. But afaik, even they are currently not buying a bunch Russian gas or filing up the spots left vacant through EU sanctions in the Russian market, neither are they delivering drones and electronics to Russia. Russia is basically a big dumb gas station at this point (granted, they have steel and Uranium too) -- they wouldn't stand a chance to fight this war on their own, without ambivalent/opportunist/supporting forces.
I am mentioning the US because EU cannot current or in the next 10 years be independent.
But afaik, even they are currently not buying a bunch Russian gas or filing up the spots left vacant through EU sanctions in the Russian market, neither are they delivering drones and electronics to Russia.
Yeah they are delivering theirs to Israel. You know the country commiting a genocide they couldn't even hide from the ICJ.
I would love Europe independence, but if I had to choose US or China the answer is the not fascist one.
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I am mentioning the US because EU cannot current or in the next 10 years be independent.
But afaik, even they are currently not buying a bunch Russian gas or filing up the spots left vacant through EU sanctions in the Russian market, neither are they delivering drones and electronics to Russia.
Yeah they are delivering theirs to Israel. You know the country commiting a genocide they couldn't even hide from the ICJ.
I would love Europe independence, but if I had to choose US or China the answer is the not fascist one.
Can you stay on topic? Like at all? You brought up the US. For seemingly no reason whatsoever.
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There have been umpteen reports about Russia sabotaging underwater power/telecom cables:
https://news.google.com/search?q=russia cable&hl=en-GB&gl=GB&ceid=GB%3Aen
Russia is not China
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Russia is not China
There's a parallel thread already. But you're partially right -- China appears to be less outwardly involved in sabotage against the EU.
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China (and Russia) have actively been sabotaging European infrastructure as we have seen in the recent couple of years
Out of the loop here. What happened?
There are several reports on that, e.g., this one:
Strangers on a Seabed: Sino-Russian Collaboration on Undersea Cable Sabotage Operations
- Recent suspicious activities conducted by the merchant vessels Shunxing-39 and Vasili Shukshin in the vicinity of Taiwan in early 2025 suggest possible collaboration between Chinese and Russian merchant ships related to the reconnaissance and sabotage of undersea communications cables that connect Taiwan to the outside world.
- Such activities follow from suspected undersea infrastructure sabotage operations conducted by Chinese merchant vessels in the Baltic Sea in 2023–2024, with strong indications of Russian assistance and coordination.
- Taken as a whole, this string of incidents suggests an increasing willingness by Moscow and Beijing to collaborate on maritime sabotage operations—include on attacks on third-party targets.
[Edit typo.]
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