[Red Badger]

Bottom line:

Chinese Electrical grid products may be booby trapped with a shut-down device.................

[null and void]

Or just made with typical Chinese quality control.

The end result is the same, but more random...

[redshawk]

I agree. Booby trap.
We must make these critical things in this country. Just like medical stuff too.

[Robert A Cook PE]

That’s the way I read it as well. That, on a practical basis, the CHinese may not have built the transformer properly either (bad insulation in one wrap of one cable in one phase is “all” that is needed) but a timed failure or remotely-induced failure requires some sort of trip mechanism or switch or power tap device that “should be” hard to hide.

These transformers operated between 45,000 volts and 500,000 volts. It is “easy” the burn the whole thing up if you can start a small failure in one place. The hard part is NOT making the dumb thing burn up!

[Georgia Girl 2]

Here's my shocked face. 😱