Of the 276 German corporations whose corporate purpose names inverters, 56 are managed by a management resident in China or Hong Kong. That is 20.3%, about 51 times as many as the average of all companies at 0.4%. This is shown by an analysis by HDH Group Research of 989,627 active corporations.
Inverters convert the electricity from solar installations for the grid and regulate how much of it is fed in. They are as a rule connected to the internet and can be maintained, updated and switched off remotely. In Europe there is therefore a debate about who may access these devices.
A recent concentration
Of the inverter companies incorporated since 2022, almost one in four is managed from China, 45 of 186. 50 of the companies in this group managed from China have no member of management in Germany.
Storage: trade from China, operation from Germany
For battery storage, 4.8% of the 2,431 companies are managed from China. In the storage trade the figure is 22.6%, in manufacturing 9.7%. Among the energy supply companies that operate storage themselves, there are fewer than ten. Grid operation and energy supply are also managed almost exclusively from Germany.
For comparison: in telecommunications, where the Federal Government agreed with network operators in 2024 to remove components of Chinese manufacturers from the 5G core networks, 0.5% of companies are managed from China.
Method
The analysis covers active corporations as of 23 October 2026 whose registered corporate purpose names the respective technology. Management in China means that the registered place of residence of a managing director or management board member lies in China or Hong Kong. The data says nothing about ownership, proximity to the state or remote access to individual devices.
The report
This item is based on the report “Managed from abroad” by HDH Group Research. It contains all figures and tables, the definition of the population and a section on method and limitations: Managed from abroad, also as PDF.
About HDH Group Research. HDH Group Research examines the structure of German corporations on the basis of its own complete database of more than one million companies. The results may be used freely provided the source is acknowledged.
Press enquiries and analyses to your own definition: info@hdhgroup.de, +43 664 2053061. The editorial team