The United States Department of Commerce applied a $300 million fine against Seagate for selling hard drives and memory chips to Huawei.
According to the documentation, the maker of hard drives and other chips sold $1.1 billion to the Chinese company during the period when it was under heavy sanctions.
In total, around 7.4 million units were shipped to Huawei after the year 2020, something that goes against the sanctions imposed by the US in 2019.
Commenting on the matter, Matthew Axelrod, Assistant Secretary for Enforcement at the Department of Commerce, noted that Seagate agreed to pay the fine.
Today’s action is a consequence of the company’s actions. Western Digital and Toshiba stopped supplying chips to Huawei, but Seagate continued even after its competitors ended their relationship with the Chinese.
In its defense, Seagate continues to claim that the sale of hard drives and other memory chips do not fall under US sanctions rules. Dave Mosley, CEO of the company said:
While we believed that we complied with all relevant export control laws at the time we made sales of the hard disk drive in question, we determined that…resolving this matter was the best course of action.
The fine must be paid in installments of US$ 15 million per quarter over the next five years. The first installment is due in October this year.
