Entrepreneur’s warning on ‘cheap’ Chinese batteries’ national security threat wins Senator’s support

Liberal Senator James Paterson has called on the Albanese government to ‘urgently act’ to protect Australian home batteries and solar systems from potentially explosive cyber security attacks.

Senator James Paterson says ‘it is not in our national interest for our number one supplier of connected batteries to be an authoritarian superpower. Picture: Gary Ramage/NCA NewsWire

The Albanese government should “urgently act” to protect Australian home batteries and solar systems from potential cyber security attacks after one of the nation’s tech entrepreneurs exposed a key vulnerability in the software of renewable energy systems, Liberal Senator James Paterson says.

Energy Renaissance chief executive Brian Craighead – who has developed a “cyber secure battery management system with the CSIRO – says households and the energy grid exposed to malicious attacks that could prove catastrophic and deadly – like Israel’s pager and walkie-talkie explosions against Hezbollah.

While Australia isn’t facing any active threats, Mr Craighead said Australians could not control the software in many home batteries, particularly cheap ones from China.

“Australia has embraced renewable energy, with over 250,000 households installing home batteries to store solar power. Alarmingly, around 80 per cent of these batteries operate on software that lacks transparency and oversight, potentially leaving them vulnerable to malicious interference,” he said.

“Consider that a standard home battery contains approximately 7,500 times more energy than a pager.”

Senator Paterson said Mr Craighead was “spot on” and demanded the government take action, like the Coalition did when it blocked Huawei from the nation’s 5G rollout. He was also concerned that an inquiry into battery storage could delay action.

“It is not in our national interest for our number one supplier of connected batteries to be an authoritarian superpower who are also our number one source of state backed cyber attacks, espionage and foreign interference,” Senator Paterson said.

“It’s even worse these products are unregulated for cyber security. And it’s not the only vulnerable part of the renewables supply chain – the smart solar inverters market is also dominated by China, including through companies like Huawei. The Albanese government should urgently act to address this cyber and national security risk before it is too late.”

China’s government criticised the Coalition’s barring of Huawei and urging of other countries to follow suit as “disgraceful and immoral conduct” as well as “blatant discrimination” of Chinese companies.

“Under the pretext of national security, Australia was the first country to ban Chinese companies from its 5G network rollout without any evidence of risks,” China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Hua Chunying said at the time.

“Australia has also been lecturing other countries about the 5G network and encouraging them to follow suit,” she said.

“Such disgraceful and immoral conduct is against basic market principles and international rules, which China firmly opposes.”

Brain Craighead, chief executive at Energy Renaissance, says the government should only allow batteries that are ‘certified as 100 per cent Australian cyber secure’. Picture: John Feder/The Australian.

But US tech billionaire Michael Dell praised Australia’s early move to block Huawei from involvement in building its 5G telecoms infrastructure, describing it as “the right move” on security grounds.

“Countries are much more aware of the importance that telecommunications networks have in the security of a nation,” Mr Dell told The Australian in late 2021.

Mr Craighead said energy grids also play a key role in national security, saying an attack on power infrastructure was “probably the most efficient way of bringing the country down”.

He said the cornerstone of this vulnerability is the battery management software, which ensures batteries charge safely, maintain optimal temperatures, and function correctly. Mr Craighead says a breach in this system could lead to severe consequences, from data leaks to physical damage, endangering human lives and infrastructure.

“Our national defence hinges on energy security. In an era of rampant cyber espionage and warfare, protecting our energy infrastructure is as vital as guarding our borders. A compromised system could result in blackouts, affect military operations, and expose sensitive data,” Mr Craighead said.

“They sort of all assume they’re not going to invade Taiwan, but they could block it, just strangle the supply. So we’re screwed as part of that process. And if we’re going to cause a fuss, we can’t cause a fuss if we’re living on candles, you know, there’s no power on the US banned the Pentagon from buying batteries from six Chinese manufacturers earlier this year.

Mr Craighead said it was not too late for the Australian government to take action, urging them to mandate that batteries are cyber-secure and issue product recalls if they’re not.

Energy Renaissance developed a cyber secure battery management system with the CSIRO, which embeds security measures at the core of the battery’s operation, protecting against malicious interference in the nation’s energy grid.

“The government should say, ‘the first and most important thing is you can only use batteries that are certified as 100 per cent Australian cyber secure. That’s it. It’s one thing. We could do it tomorrow.”