(Reuters) – A group of Republican lawmakers said Chinese battery companies CATL and Gotion High Tech should immediately be added to a U.S. import ban list, alleging their supply chains use forced labor, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Lawmakers called for CATL and Gotion, which have ties to Ford (NYSE:) and Volkswagen (ETR:), respectively, to be added to what is known as an entity list under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, the report said Thursday. .
The Entity List restricts the import of goods linked to what the US government has described as the ongoing genocide of minorities in China's Xinjiang region. Beijing denies committing any violations.
The company said in an emailed statement to Reuters that any allegation that Gottion “uses or is associated with forced labor is baseless and completely false,” adding that the selection of partners is based on “rigorous review mechanisms and evaluation criteria.”
China's Volkswagen Group has no evidence of human rights violations in relation to its business activities in China, a company spokesperson told Reuters in an emailed statement on Friday.
Volkswagen is also investigating these allegations immediately, “as we have done in the past,” the spokesperson added.
A Volkswagen spokesman said that the Chinese Volkswagen Investment Corporation owns 26% of the shares in Gution, and the latter is not a candidate for any American projects or import business into the country.
CATL said in a statement that the accusations against it are “completely baseless and false,” and that it complies with applicable laws and regulations.
It said business relationships with some of the suppliers cited had “long since ceased”.
Ford did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment.