Is China eyeing New Hampshire's water as part of a 'soft power invasion'?

(NewsNation) — When a billionaire Chinese businessman and his company quietly purchased a commercial building in Nashua, New Hampshire, to ostensibly set up a water plant, the deal went largely unnoticed. That changed when the purchase price was publicly revealed.

The company, Nongfu Spring, owned by Zhong Shanshan, is China’s largest beverage company. The site is next to the Pennichuck water system, allowing the company to use local water for a beverage plant. What’s raising eyebrows is the mystery of why the company paid $67 million in cash for a property valued at $15 million.

“Being tied into our Pennichuck water system and taking millions of gallons a day of drinking water from the citizens of Nashua is very concerning,” local resident Bob Lozeau told NewsNation. He said most people in Nashua didn’t know about the sale before it happened.

State senator concerned for town's water supply

State Sen. Kevin Avard, a Republican whose district includes part of Nashua, shared his concerns.

“You have the airport here. You have our water supply they are looking to capture,” he told NewsNation.

The building spans 337,000 square feet and is situated on 23 acres. It’s close to the Nashua Airport, several defense centers and a Federal Aviation Administration control center.

Lily Tang Williams fled communism in China and is now running for Congress in New Hampshire as a Republican.

“I did research in English and Mandarin, which is my first language, and I was just shocked,” Williams told NewsNation.

Republican: Xi Jinping wants to use 'soft power invasion'

“I have been trying to warn people,” she said. “Xi Jinping has a China dream, and his China dream is to use a soft power invasion. Business. Education. Apps like TikTok and WeChat. Media. Entertainment. Everything they can, without firing one shot, to expand into western countries like the United States.” 

She said China doesn’t want her to discuss what she calls the “soft power invasion” and the national security concerns associated with projects like the Nongfu Spring plant.

Williams said she was wary of speaking about the issue in China.

“I would disappear. I’m afraid if I go back, and I go in, they won’t let me go out. I would disappear. They want me to shut up,” she said.

Chinese investor buys former Daniel Webster College campus

The Nongfu Spring expansion in Nashua isn’t the only Chinese investment. A few miles away, a Chinese investor purchased the former campus of what was Daniel Webster College. The 50-acre site was sold for $14 million about seven years ago but is mostly abandoned today. The mayor of Nashua, Jim Donchess, said the investor paid double what the property was worth.

He said it was unclear why Nongfu Spring would pay more than four times the assessed value for the property near the water plant.

“It’s very weird. Why they would do that, I have no idea,” he said.

Donchess said he’s not against the project and doesn’t believe there are any national security concerns. The city owns the Pennichuck Corporation water system itself, and the mayor said the city would never consider selling it.

But Donchess, like much of Nashua, has been left wondering why Nongfu Spring paid so much for the property. “It’s very puzzling as to why that would happen,” he said.

Nongfu Spring has not yet responded to NewsNation's requests for comment.