Ex-hydro researcher tells spying trial he wasn’t given opportunity to defend himself

MONTREAL — A former researcher with Quebec’s hydro utility on trial for economic espionage was applying for work in China and elsewhere because he was having difficulties on the job and wasn’t sure about his long-term work prospects in the province.

Yuesheng Wang said the departure of a mentor, issues with French and frustration with management showing dwindling interest in his research fuelled his resolve to look elsewhere.

But Wang testified Wednesday he did not disclose confidential information as the Crown contends, and was shocked after he was arrested and charged in 2022.

“I was surprised and even astonished,” Wang told the court through an interpreter.

The Crown accuses Wang, 38, of sharing confidential research from Hydro-Québec with Chinese entities in commercializing battery technologies.

Wang has pleaded not guilty to economic espionage on behalf of China under Canada’s Security of Information Act and to four other charges filed in 2022 and 2024 under the Criminal Code: fraudulently using a computer, breach of trust, committing preparatory acts on behalf of a foreign entity and informing that entity — the People’s Republic of China — of his intentions.

The Crown has said another charge of fraudulently obtaining a trade secret was withdrawn last year.

Notably, the Crown argued that Wang, while he was working at Hydro-Québec, applied to work at Chinese universities under the framework of the Thousand Talents program, a recruitment tool used by the Chinese government to attract foreign-trained scientists to return to work in China.

But Wang denied those allegations Wednesday, saying the references in the documents were based on publicly held information that was “nothing special, nothing secret,” found either through Hydro’s own website or news releases or in academic books.

He said his intention was to demonstrate that he was “working for a strong company” by referencing Hydro-Québec projects. He also noted how he had brought his own expertise about sodium ion batteries to the utility.

“I was the one to teach them about the technology. I was the one to bring the technology to Hydro-Québec,” Wang told Quebec court Judge Jean-Philippe Marcoux through an interpreter.

Wang, a Chinese national, worked between 2016 and 2022 at Hydro’s Center of Excellence in Transportation Electrification and Energy Storage, known as CETEES, a research institute at Hydro-Québec located in Varennes, Que., that looks into advanced battery technologies and energy storage systems. He has told the court he is now unemployed.

On Tuesday, Wang testified that he had many difficulties upon his arrival to Quebec due to a language barrier. Wang explained he was applying elsewhere because he felt insecure at Hydro-Québec, where he was having tension with his managers, while also having problems getting long-term work permits. He said he was also concerned about a lack of resources or interest for his research.

There was also his notable lack of command in French or English which made work difficult and has frequently been referred to during the trial, he explained.

On Wednesday, Wang said he was unaware of rules that forbid use of Hydro-Québec computers or personal email addresses. He noted the company had routinely contacted him using his personal email on work-related matters.

Earlier, Wang said training on policy like the research institution’s ethics code or publication and patent process were done in French and he was never given any formal documents or training.

“According to my memory, no one gave me these documents and I’m not aware of their existence either,” Wang said.

He said he applied for work through the Chinese government program because it was tied to a full-professorship and the ability to hire PhD students if the application was successful.

“This is the job of my dream,” Wang testified of overseeing PhD research. The complimentary documents he prepared referencing Hydro-Québec projects were ultimately never shared because all four of his applications to Chinese institutions were rejected on the basis of his CV, which was the first step in the process for applying for the Chinese program.

In addition to academic options, Wang also applied at BASF, a private company, and Concordia University around the same time.

He denied working for any Chinese institutions in a clandestine manner. He testified it was all done with the consent of his Hydro-Québec superiors and non-disclosure would go against basic scientific ethics.

“The Chinese institutions didn’t pay me so why should I work for them?” Wang said. “I only worked for Hydro-Québec.”

Earlier Wednesday, Wang said he had no idea about a criminal probe in his case until his arrest in November 2022.

Wang said he wasn’t given any explanation by his superiors before he was suspended in August 2022 and fired in November of that year. Hydro officials launched an internal probe over a scientific publication by Wang that came to light in May 2022, which was escalated to the RCMP.

“I was very surprised because I didn’t think I did anything wrong,” Wang said of the Hydro probe.

He also said he offered to meet with his superiors to talk to them about the situation, but he never got the chance to have that meeting.

“This never happened and this surprised me a lot. I was expecting this opportunity and I never had it,” Wang said.

The Crown will begin cross-examining Wang on Thursday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2025.

Sidhartha Banerjee, The Canadian Press