Four fully-assembled, 170-foot tall ship-to-shore cranes could be seen on the Elizabeth River Jan. 7, 2019. The Port of Virginia approved the spending of $44.8 million that covered the crane costs, each weighing about 1,800 tons, delivered to Virginia International Gateway, one of the port’s largest container terminals. They were built by Shanghai-based Zhenhua Heavy Industries Co., or ZPMC. (L. Todd Spencer/Staff file)
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by Caitlyn Burchett at Virginia Pilot Online
U.S. lawmakers continue to talk about the threat of Chinese technology, including U.S. reliance on Chinese-manufactured cranes at port terminals like those in Hampton Roads.
In late February, the House Committee on Homeland Security and a select committee on competition with China issued a letter to state-owned Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Co. (ZPMC), questioning why its cranes have been found to contain communications equipment with no clear purpose or record of their installation. The letter followed an eight-monthlong joint investigation by the committees and was first reported by The Wall Street Journal last week.
“Given that private companies in China are legally beholden to the Chinese Communist Party, it is incumbent upon all of us to be vigilant in scrutinizing any use of Chinese technology at our ports,” Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said in an email.
The Pentagon raised concerns about the cranes last year. While lawmakers are sounding the alarm for espionage potential at U.S. ports, the American Association of Port Authorities, ZPMC and a representative of the Chinese embassy have shut down such claims.
ZPMC accounts for nearly 80% of the ship-to-shore cranes in use at U.S. maritime ports,…
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