Dumping allegations: US solar panel manufacturers want tariffs on India, Indonesia & Laos imports; aim to protect billions of dollars of investment – Times of India

A coalition of main US solar panel manufacturers has filed a proper petition urging the US commerce division to impose tariffs on solar imports from India, Indonesia, and Laos.The group alleges that producers in these international locations are flooding the American market with artificially low-priced solar panels, harming the home solar manufacturing business.In accordance to a Reuters report, the petition, submitted on Thursday by the Alliance for American Solar Manufacturing and Commerce, contains main business gamers comparable to First Solar, Qcells (Hanwha’s solar division), Talon PV, and Mission Solar. The alliance claims corporations within the three international locations are promoting solar merchandise beneath manufacturing prices and are benefiting from unfair authorities subsidies.In accordance to the petitioners, Chinese language-owned manufacturers have shifted operations to Indonesia and Laos to circumvent present US tariffs on imports from different Southeast Asian international locations. Indian manufacturers are additionally accused of dumping low-value panels into the US market.The group highlighted a dramatic rise in solar imports from India, Indonesia, and Laos — leaping from $289 million in 2022 to $1.6 billion in 2023. The surge has raised issues amongst US solar producers in regards to the influence on current investments geared toward boosting home solar manufacturing.“We’ve got at all times stated, vigorous enforcement of our commerce legal guidelines is essential to the success of this business,” stated Tim Brightbill, lead legal professional for the petitioners.

US solar manufacturing and inflation discount act

Whereas the bulk of solar panels put in within the US are nonetheless imported, American manufacturing capability has expanded considerably for the reason that passage of the Inflation Discount Act (IRA) in 2022. The regulation offers tax credit to increase home clear vitality manufacturing and scale back dependence on Chinese language-made solar panels.The US now has round 50 gigawatts of solar panel manufacturing capability, up from 7 GW in 2020. Nevertheless, demand continues to outpace provide, with installations anticipated to attain practically 43 GW yearly by 2030, in accordance to the Solar Vitality Industries Affiliation (SEIA).

Subsequent steps: Commerce division assessment

The US division of commerce has 20 days to resolve whether or not to launch an investigation into the alleged dumping and subsidy practices. If it proceeds, the case could lead on to new tariffs inside a 12 months, relying on the result of the investigation.