A firm with links to the Chinese state that is developing a major electricity project in Britain could pose a “risk to national security”, the Government has said.
Business Secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg issued a legal order imposing conditions on Stonehill Energy Storage Limited.
The Government says the firm - whose ultimate parent company is China’s state-owned China Hua Neng Group - wants to “acquire the entirety of development rights” for the Stonehill project.
The scheme is an extension to one of Europe’s biggest battery storage facilities near Minety, Wiltshire, which already has capacity for 100MW of power.
The purchase will be able to go ahead, but government ministers will have the power to veto which firm operates the site and how they share information.
A government source said it was to “stop untrustworthy or dodgy actors digging into our electricity network”.
A government statement issued during the Queen’s mourning period said: “The Secretary of State considers that a risk to national security arises relating to the security of an important UK electricity asset, and services provided to the GB National Grid.”
It added: “The Secretary of State considers that the final order is necessary and proportionate to mitigate the risk to national security.”
The firm’s accounts say its immediate parent company is Power Act Limited, registered in Hong Kong, and but that China Hua Neng Group is the ultimate parent company.
Battery storage helps improve the reliability of green energy like solar and wind power, by storing it then releasing it when it is needed most.
A British firm, Penso Power, helped develop the site in Wiltshire but a spokesman told the Mirror it had sold its rights to the Stonehill project in 2020.
it comes amid a heated debate in the Tory party and government about the influence of Chinese firms in Britain.
Reports suggest the UK is trying to ease China General Nuclear, a state-owned firm, out of involvement in the planned Sizewell C nuclear power plant.
