Yuesheng Wang, 35, was detained by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) on Monday and accused of spying.
According to a statement from the police, Mr. Wang “obtained trade secrets to benefit the People’s Republic of China, at the expense of Canada’s economic interests.”
On Tuesday, he will show up in court in Longueuil, Quebec, to answer four accusations.
The citizen of Candiac, a suburb south of Montreal, is charged with stealing trade secrets, using a computer without authorization, betraying the trust of a public servant, and engaging in deception to do so.
It is claimed that the offenses took place between February 2018 and October 2022.
The utility’s Center of Excellence in Transportation Electrification and Energy Storage (CETEES), which creates technologies for electric vehicles, said in a statement that Mr. Wang worked on batteries for the center.
According to RCMP Inspector David Beaudoin, Mr. Wang utilized his position at Hydro-Quebec to carry out research for other research institutions, including a Chinese university.
He claimed that he submitted patent applications and published scientific articles “in collaboration [with] this foreign actor rather than with Hydro-Quebec.”
In August 2022, Mr. Wang was the subject of an investigation after the internal security division of the business lodged a complaint.
In a statement, a security representative from Hydro-Quebec said that “no organization is safe from a situation like this one.” They added that “our detection and intervention mechanisms allowed our investigators to bring this matter to the attention of the RCMP, with whom we have worked closely ever since.”
The public utility business manages the production, transmission, and storage of electricity for the Canadian province as well as the export of power to some regions of the US.
According to a corporate website, it is Canada’s biggest electricity utility.
In a statement, the RCMP stated that “detection and disruption of foreign intervention attempts” is a top priority for them and other law enforcement and intelligence agencies throughout the world.
Investigators declared that Hydro-Quebec was a crucial infrastructure and a strategic asset that needed to be safeguarded.
To strengthen Canada’s reaction and resilience to this danger, the RCMP and its allies are collaborating with at-risk sectors.
Canada is anticipated to reveal a new Indo-Pacific policy in the upcoming weeks. Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly stated earlier this month that the nation would strive to strengthen ties with other Asian countries.
She warned Canadian corporations not to become too involved with Chinese companies in a speech, saying “China is an increasingly disruptive global power.”
