Unexplained electronic components have been discovered in imported equipment intended for Denmark’s energy supply network, the industry group Green Power Denmark said on Wednesday, adding that an investigation is underway to learn more.
The findings come amid growing international scrutiny over potential security vulnerabilities in critical infrastructure such as energy grids.
“These are printed circuit boards that were supposed to be part of power supply components,” Jorgen Christensen, technical director at Green Power Denmark, told Reuters.
“We don’t know how critical this is or whether there are any malicious intentions behind it,” he said.
Denmark’s Ministry of Preparedness and Resilience declined to comment on whether an investigation had been launched. The Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Energy, and the intelligence services did not respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.
Christensen declined to disclose the country of origin of the equipment, who is conducting the investigation, or provide details on the capabilities of the components—including whether they were intended for solar energy equipment.
“This is very concerning. It’s important that an investigation is ongoing,” Walburga Hemetsberger, CEO of the solar lobbying group SolarPower Europe, told Reuters on Wednesday.
Claims have surfaced on social media suggesting that the components in question, destined for solar panels and wind turbines, were imported from China. However, no official confirmation has been given.
Christensen said the components were recently discovered during a routine inspection of circuit boards that were to be integrated into power supply equipment. The boards may have been designed for multipurpose use, which could explain the presence of the additional components—but he emphasized that such parts should not be included in equipment meant for energy infrastructure.
“It’s possible the supplier had no malicious intent. We can’t say for sure at this point, but that doesn’t change the fact that these components shouldn’t be there,” he stated.
Reuters reported last week that U.S. energy officials had discovered hidden communication devices in Chinese-made solar inverters and batteries, which could potentially bypass firewalls and destabilize electrical grids.
Power inverters—mostly manufactured in China—are used globally to connect solar panels and wind turbines to electric grids. They are also found in batteries, heat pumps, and electric vehicle chargers.
While inverters are designed to allow remote access for updates and maintenance, utility companies typically install firewalls to prevent direct communication back to China.
However, U.S. experts have found fake communication devices—undocumented in product specifications—in some Chinese solar inverters that were removed from grid-connected systems for security testing.
Over the past nine months, undocumented communication devices, including mobile radio units, have also been discovered in certain batteries from multiple Chinese suppliers.
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