US Federal Government authorities seized a 226-tonne electricity transformer made by Chinese company Jiangsu Huapeng Transformer Company at Houston port last summer and took it to Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, New Mexico, for unspecified reasons, The Wall Street Journal reports.
The lab, which is operated by Honeywell International, handles contract work for the US Energy Department associated with threats to national security, the report added.
A US representative of the company, Jim Cai, told the newspaper that it had sold more than 7000 such transformers in the past two decades to numerous international customers.
Cai was unaware of what had happened to the transformer until he was asked for comment by the WSJ.
US President Donald Trump on 1 May signed an executive order for the DoE to find and ban devices from the power grid made by foreign countries that were considered a threat to national security.
A report in Politico said Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette had recently played down concerns from industry that new clean energy projects could be inconvenienced by the order.
Xi Jingping SAYS TO PREPARE FOR WAR
The President of China has urged the country’s army to prepare for armed combat, claiming the coronavirus pandemic is having a significant impact on national security.
On Tuesday, President Xi Jinping said China must ensure its military is strong because the coronavirus pandemic has had a “profound” effect on the world situation and China’s security.
State media China Daily reports Xi instructed the military to gear up combat preparation and conduct battle drills in a flexible manner.
“The armed forces must improve operational capability in each and every aspect,” Xi said.
The military must practice carrying out training procedures under COVID-19 precautionary measures, he added.