Ford Motor Co. will contract technology and software from at least four Chinese companies that provide similar services to the Chinese government, military and North Korean government, according to contracts obtained by Republican investigators.
Exposure — announced on Monday Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis. Chairman of the House Select Committee on the Communist Party of China and Energy and Commerce Chairman Kathy McMorris Rodgers, Republican of Washington; —This is part of an ongoing joint Republican investigation into Ford’s partnership with Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL), an electric vehicle (EV) battery maker based in China’s Fujian province.
Republican leaders say they recently reviewed some of Ford’s agreements with CATL. The documents allege that the four Chinese companies in question will be “intimately involved” in the design, construction and information technology process of Ford’s proposed EV battery factory in Marshall, Michigan, with services provided by CATL. revealed.
“Ford’s use of the same cloud integration and data providers associated with the North Korean Foreign Ministry’s sanctions evasion activities is indefensible,” Gallagher and McMorris Rogers wrote in a letter to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen last week. sent a letter.
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Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.), Chairman of the House Select Committee on the Communist Party of China, watches during a public hearing on February 28, 2023. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
“The entire security system of a Ford factory could be compromised by this software before it is even operational,” they continued. “The same companies that actively support China’s surveillance state will have the ability to embed backdoors, spyware, and other forms of malware inside Ford.” [cloud service] could impact infrastructure, compromise the confidentiality and integrity of Ford’s confidential information, and pose a risk to American Airlines’ data privacy rights. ”
Lawmakers wrote the letter to Yellen after reviewing the agreement signed between Ford and CATL. They demanded: Ministry of Finance The Office of Foreign Assets Control is investigating possible sanctions evasion activities carried out by four companies whose identities remain unknown.
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Mr. Gallagher and Mr. McMorris Rodgers sent a separate letter to Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo asking the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security to investigate four anonymous software service providers. They specifically asked authorities to consider placing the company on the list of entities subject to significant U.S. trade restrictions.
“In summary, a cursory review of publicly available information reveals a direct relationship between the above-mentioned companies and the United States. [People’s Liberation Army]the Chinese Communist Party, the Chinese Ministry of Public Security, the ongoing genocide of Muslim Uyghurs in Xinjiang, and the North Korean government,” they wrote to Raimondo.
In a third letter, Republicans asked Ford President and CEO James Farley to make relevant company officials available for interviews with the committee.
Ford CEO Jim Farley said at a press conference that the company is partnering with China-based company Contemporary Amperex Technology to open an electric vehicle battery factory in Marshall, Michigan, on February 13, 2023. announced that it would be built. (Bill Priano/Getty Images)
“We have been helping the commission understand this project, which is wholly owned and operated by Ford,” a Ford spokesperson told Fox News Digital. “Ford has been and remains committed to complying with all government regulations across our operations.”
“Beyond legal requirements, Ford suppliers must meet our high standards and codes of conduct, including protecting human rights, and we extend those requirements to any suppliers we collaborate with.” the person in charge said. “We welcome information from any source regarding the integrity of our supply chain and partners.”
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The Republicans said in their letter that the first of the four Chinese companies in question had a contract to develop concept designs on behalf of CATL at Ford’s Michigan plant. That same company is a supplier of engineering design services to the Chinese military.
The second company will provide tools and applications for the proposed plant-as-a-service integration platform, which will play a key role in the IT infrastructure. Republican leaders wrote that the company provides similar services to groups involved in sanctions evasion activities and to the North Korean government.
Zeng Yuqun, who founded CATL in 2012 and currently serves as its top executive, was recognized as a member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee last year. A U.S. government report released in 2018 said the CPC is a “key coordinating body” that brings together representatives of Chinese interest groups and is led by the Standing Committee of the Politburo of the Communist Party of China. (Paul Zinken/Photo in association with Getty Images)
A third Chinese company will be hired to provide Ford with integrated authentication account software tools designed to protect online user access at the factory. Republican investigators have found that the company currently provides software services to the Shenyang Institute of Automation, a sub-institution controlled by the Chinese Academy of Sciences and already listed with the Ministry of Commerce.
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And a fourth company will oversee Ford’s so-called business process management software tools. However, the company has a contract with China’s Ministry of Public Security’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region Public Security Bureau, which Republicans say has been sanctioned by the Treasury Department for “promoting the ongoing genocide of Uyghur Muslims.” It pointed out.
Ford in February 2023 announced that it would invest $3.5 billion A lithium iron phosphate battery factory will be built in Marshall to supply the growing electric vehicle manufacturing industry, creating 2,500 new jobs. As part of the announcement, the U.S. automaker said it had reached an agreement with CATL to manufacture battery cells at its factory using services provided by the Chinese company.
Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) will speak at a March 2023 hearing. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
The plan received widespread backlash from national security experts and lawmakers citing CATL’s extensive ties to the Chinese Communist Party, but Ford downplayed the criticism and maintained sole ownership of the plant. He repeatedly stated that he was there.
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Then, in November, Ford announced that it would significantly shrink its factories by 40% and reduce the number of jobs it projected to create by more than 30%.
A group of House Republicans led by Energy and Commerce Committee Chairwoman Cathy McMorris said, “Ford’s partnership with a Chinese company fosters China’s growing control over the U.S. electric vehicle supply chain and threatens our national security by further increasing dependence on China.” “We are concerned that this could jeopardize our coverage.” Mr. Rogers wrote to Mr. Farley in September.
“If China were to take the lead in domestic electric vehicle production, it would expose the United States to serious national security risks at a time of heightened geopolitical tensions.”
