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| Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Company's cargo crane is seen at Pusan Newport in Busan. Screenshot from Pusan Newport Company's website |
By Park Jae-hyuk
The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries recently probed Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Company's (ZPMC) cargo cranes installed in Korea's major ports, as controversy broke out in the U.S. earlier this month over a claim that the Chinese-made equipment's software possibly serves as a "spying tool."
With the aim of helping Korean ports to reduce dependence on Chinese products, the ministry also plans to carry out full-scale inspections of cargo cranes at ports nationwide, in collaboration with the country's spy agency.
"Along with the National Intelligence Service, our department in charge of port security will conduct the inspections," a ministry official said Monday.
The decision came after concerns have also grown in Korea over the possibility of ZPMC's cranes serving as "Trojan horses" by using sensors that can track the origin and destination of freight.
Last Thursday, Rep. An Byung-gil of the ruling People Power Party pointed out that Korea is not an exception of countries facing security concerns over the Chinese-made cranes.
Data given by the oceans ministry to the lawmaker showed that 427 out of 809 cranes operated at Korea's 10 ports were manufactured by ZPMC. In particular, 21 out of 28 cranes in Pyeongtaek, home to U.S. Army Garrison Humphreys, the world's largest overseas U.S. military installation, were made by the Chinese company.
"We need to carry out security inspections on all cranes at local ports," An said.
ZPMC's Korea operation denied the suspicion, saying the claim is groundless.
"Amid the conflict between the U.S. and China, it seems that one of our competitors spread the rumor in the U.S.," a ZPMC Korea official said. "Korean ports independently operate cranes we deliver to them, so it is impossible for us to leak their data."
He added that the oceans ministry had pointed nothing out after its first inspection.
ZPMC, however, may lose its ground in the Korean market, as the suspicion over Chinese surveillance has prompted the government to accelerate its efforts to make Korean ports use more local cranes.
Earlier this year, the oceans ministry unveiled its plan to increase the use of domestic equipment at ports, saying it will help Korean firms build smart ports by utilizing their own technologies.
Until early 2000s, Korean manufacturers had been supplying port cranes worldwide.
However, their market share tumbled in mid-2000s, as their Chinese rivals began providing products at lower prices. As a result, Korean firms' combined global quay crane market share has stayed below 1 percent since 2013.
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