Alleged Chinese spy in Hydro-Qubec case released on bail

A formerHydro-Qubecemployee charged withspying for China wasreleased on bail Monday.

Yuesheng Wang, 35, was arrested by the RCMP on Nov. 14 and has been in custody since.

Federal prosecutors had opposed his release, saying they considered Wang a flight risk.Wang had argued he was committed to staying in Quebec to clear his name and restore his reputation.

The judge said he was satisfied with the $200,000 in financial guarantees put forward by the accused. Wang will also have to turn in his passport and have a cell phone, with geolocation turned on, on his person at all times.

A resident of Candiac, Que., south of Montreal, Wangis the first person to be charged with economic espionage under Canada's Security of Information Act, and he also faces three charges under the Criminal Code for fraudulent use of a computer, fraudulently obtaining a trade secret and breach of trust.

Until he was fired earlier this month, Wang was a researcher who worked on battery materials with the utility's Center of Excellence in Transportation Electrification and Energy Storage, known as CETEES. The centre develops technology for electric vehicles and energy-storage systems.

The RCMP allege that the former Hydro-Qubec employee gave information about the public corporation to a Chinese university and Chinese research centres and that he published scientific articles and filed patents with them.