The Federal Communications Commission on July 28 added foreign produced power inverters to its list of products that are deemed to pose an unacceptable risk to the national security of the U.S. or the safety and security of U.S. persons.
The FCC said that inverters’ remote connectivity “introduces additional vulnerabilities which compound as inverter-based resources proliferate on the U.S. grid. These vulnerabilities could enable foreign firms to turn off the inverters or use them to collect and exfiltrate data, facilitate remote access and surveillance by foreign government actors, or be otherwise exploited through a cyberattack.”
As a result of the FCC move, utilities will not be able to purchase new, foreign produced power inverters, as they are generally prohibited from receiving FCC authorization to be imported, marketed, or sold in the U.S.
However, there is no impact to the use of previously purchased devices, and utilities can still import, buy, or use of any existing models of power inverters the FCC previously authorized.
For utilities planning to purchase new inverters for their systems, they will have to buy domestically produced ones.
See the FCC press release and determination assessment for more information.
