Sany's 'historic victory' over dispute with Obama

Photo taken on Feb. 6, 2014 shows machineshop trucks in a plant of Chinese multinational heavy machinery manufacturing company Sany in San Jose Dos Campos, Brazil. [File photo: Xinhua]

Chinese machinery manufacturer Sany Heavy Industry has won a lawsuit against US President Barack Obama connected to its attempt to purchase a wind farm in the United States.

A US federal appeals court in Washington has ruled the US government violated the rights of the Ralls Corporation, which is affiliated with Sany Heavy Industry, when it rejected the company's bid to purchase an Oregon wind-farm project.

The three-judge panel has ruled "the presidential order deprived Ralls of significant property interests," constituting a clear constitutional violation.

The appeals court has now sent the case back to the lower courts, and has ordered that Ralls be provided the unclassified evidence the president relied on and be given an opportunity to respond to it.

Xiang Wenbo, president of Sany Heavy Industry, is describing the ruling as an "historic victory."

Observers are suggesting the ruling may help other foreign companies who have to go through a national security review by Congress before being allowed to purchase assets in the US.

Harry Clark, an attorney and specialist in cases involving the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US, says companies looking for US investment opportunities will now be able to access to unclassified information used by the committee and try to rebut it.

In 2012, Obama issued a presidential order to prevent Ralls from purchasing four wind farms in Oregon for national security concerns, as their locations are near a Naval Weapons Systems Training Facility.

Ralls then sued Obama for blocking the deal, claiming that the presidential order was unconstitutional and failed to provide detailed evidence.

In a recent report to Congress, it's been revealed Chinese investors underwent more than double the number of congressional reviews in 2012 than the previous year, overtaking the U.K. as the most scrutinized foreign buyers of American assets.