The story of the unlicensed export of epoxy paint by PPG to the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission carries on. This blog reported on the $500,000 fine imposed on the regional sales manager involved. The epoxy was shipped to fulfill a contract between a Chinese subsidiary of PPG and another Chinese company engaged to work on the construction of the Chasma nuclear power plant for PAEC. Because PAEC is on the Bureau of Industry and Security’s Entity List, the export required a license from BIS.

Xu Wang, a U.S. woman who ran the Chinese subsidiary, was arrested last month. During a hearing yesterday, the government argued without success that she should be held without bail. According to this AP report on the hearing, the judge questioned the prosecution’s assertion that the case had serious national security ramifications.

“This is not latex paint,” said assistant U.S. Attorney G. Michael Harvey. “This is a very sophisticated paint, which has been tested and certified for use inside the containment facility of a nuclear reactor.”

That may well be the case, but if this paint indeed had such strategic implications, one has to wonder why the BIS stated, as it did in the case involving the sales manager, that the item was classified as EAR99.

A hearing was to be held today to determine the conditions of Mrs. Wang’s release.

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