The American president, Donald Trump, on Wednesday declared a national emergency for the electrical grid, prohibiting the purchase and installation of equipment from countries under arms embargoes, a measure aimed at China without naming it.
The executive order, which does not name any country, prohibits the purchase or installation of such products from suppliers in countries under arms embargoes or American sanctions.
None of the countries listed export equipment to the United States’ electrical grid, with the exception of China.
“The objective is to protect the grid and the U.S. electrical systems,” a White House source told the Agence France-Presse (AFP), without specifying which countries would be designated.
Implementation regulations are expected within 120 days.
A similar executive order issued by President Trump in May 2020 did not name any country, but the implementing order, issued seven months later, explicitly targeted Chinese equipment.
The measure included transformers, inverters, energy storage systems and industrial automation systems, as well as associated software and remote access.
The Energy Secretary could impose conditions on equipment already installed, up to its removal.
The executive order cites the growth of data centers, artificial intelligence and defense production, which has increased the United States’ electricity needs.
The FCC, the telecommunications regulator, had restricted the import of foreign inverters at the end of July, following a similar decision by the European Commission in May.
However, a Department of Energy analysis, published in January after inspecting 30 Chinese inverters, found no definitive evidence of hidden malicious material.
