The Chinese company with a major stake in the proposed Hinkley Point C nuclear power station has been charged by the US government over nuclear espionage, according to the US justice department.
In a 17-page indictment, the US government said nuclear engineer
Allen Ho, employed by the China General Nuclear Power Company, and the
company itself had unlawfully conspired to develop nuclear material in China without US approval and “with the intent to secure an advantage to the People’s Republic of China”.
Allen Ho, nuclear engineer employed by the China General Nuclear Power
Company, charged by the US government over nuclear espionage.
Photograph: Knox County Sheriff's Office
CGNPC has a 33% stake in the £18bn Hinkley Point project in Somerset, which Theresa May has delayed partly because of concerns over China’s involvement. The delay prompted a warning earlier this week from the Chinese ambassador to the UK, who said that relations between the two countries are at a “crucial historical juncture”.
Assistant US attorney general John P Carlin said: “Allen Ho, at the
direction of a Chinese state-owned nuclear power company allegedly
approached and enlisted US-based nuclear experts to provide integral
assistance in developing and producing special nuclear material in
China.
“Ho did so without registering with the Department of Justice as an
agent of a foreign nation or authorisation from the US Department of
Energy”, Carlin continued. “Prosecuting those who seek to evade US law
by attaining sensitive nuclear technology for foreign nations is a top
priority for the National Security Division.”
Ho allegedly conspired with China from 1997 to April 2016,
said the indictment that was unsealed in April. Conspiring to unlawfully
engage and participate in the development of nuclear material outside
of the US carries a maximum sentence of life in prison and a fine of
$250,000 (£192,000). Conspiring to act as an agent of a foreign
government in the US carries a maximum prison sentence of 10 years.
“The federal government has regulations in place to oversee civil
nuclear cooperation”, said Michael Steinbach, executive assistant
director of the FBI’s national security branch. “If those authorities
are circumvented, this can result in significant damage to our national
security.
“The US will use all of its law enforcement tools to stop those who try to steal US nuclear technology and expertise.”
Ho was born in China and is a naturalised US citizen with dual
residency. CGNCP, the largest nuclear power company in China, is owned
by that country’s state-owned assets supervision and administration
commission of the state council.
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