A US trade panel has ruled that low-cost solar panels imported from China and other countries have caused serious injury to American manufacturers, raising the possibility of the Trump administration imposing tariffs that could double the price of…<\/b>
\nA US trade panel has ruled that low-cost solar panels imported from China and other countries have caused serious injury to American manufacturers, raising the possibility of the Trump administration imposing tariffs that could double the price of solar panels from aboard.
Friday\u2019s vote by the International Trade Commission was unanimous. The trade commission has until mid-November to recommend a remedy to President Donald Trump, with a final decision on tariffs expected in January.
White House spokeswoman Natalie Strom said on Friday that Trump \u201cwill examine the facts and make a determination that reflects the best interests of the United States. The US solar manufacturing sector contributes to our energy security and economic prosperity.\u201d
Georgia-based Suniva Inc, and Oregon-based SolarWorld Americas brought the case, saying a flood of imports have pushed them to the brink of extinction. Suniva declared bankruptcy, while SolarWorld had to lay off three-quarters of its workforce.
Cheap imports have led to a boom in the US solar industry, where rooftop and other installations have surged tenfold since 2011.
The main trade group for the solar industry and many governors oppose tariffs, saying they could cause a sharp price hike that would lead to a drop in solar installations by more than 50 per cent in two years.
Abigail Ross Hopper, president and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association, called the trade commission\u2019s 4-0 vote disappointing for nearly 9,000 US solar companies and the 260,000 Americans they employ.
\u201cForeign-owned companies that brought business failures on themselves are attempting to exploit American trade laws to gain a bailout for their bad investments,\u201d Hopper said, warning that potential tariffs could double the price of solar, lowering US demand and eroding billions of dollars in investment.
Suniva\u2019s US operations are based in Georgia, but the company\u2019s majority owner is in China. SolarWorld Americas is a subsidiary of German solar giant SolarWorld, which declared insolvency last month. Suniva hailed the ruling.
\u201cIt will be in President Trump\u2019s hands to decide whether America will continue to have the capability to manufacture this energy source,\u201d the company said in a statement. \u201cPresident Trump can remedy this injury with relief that ensures US energy dominance that includes a healthy US solar ecosystem and prevents China and its proxies from owning the sun.\u201d
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Trump is considered sympathetic to imposing tariffs on solar imports as part of his \u201cAmerica first\u201d philosophy.
Governors of four solar-friendly states \u2013 Nevada, Colorado, Massachusetts and North Carolina \u2013 oppose the tariff, warning it could jeopardise the industry. They cited a study showing that a global tariff could cause solar installations to drop by more than 50 per cent in two years, a crushing blow as states push for renewable energy that does not contribute to climate change.
\u201cThe requested tariff could inflict a devastating blow on our states\u2019 solar industries and lead to unprecedented job loss, at steep cost to our states\u2019 economies,\u201d the two Republicans and two Democrats wrote in a letter on Thursday to the trade commission.
A group of former US military officials also urged the Trump administration to reject solar tariffs, noting that the Defence Department is the nation\u2019s largest energy consumer and follows a federal law calling for the Pentagon to procure 25 per cent of its energy from renewable sources by 2025.
Suniva called the case a matter of fairness. Even with better manufacturing methods, lower costs and \u201cdramatically improved efficiency,\u201d the company has \u201csuffered substantial losses due to global imports,\u201d Suniva said in its petition. The company declared bankruptcy this spring after laying off 190 employees and closing production sites in Georgia and Michigan.
SolarWorld Americas, meanwhile, has trimmed its workforce from 1,300 to 300, with more cuts likely.
\u201cAfter nearly 30 factories have shut down in the wake of surging imports, the legacy of this pioneering American industry hangs in the balance,\u201d said Juergen Stein, CEO and president of SolarWorld Americas.
\u201cWe believe that the promise of solar \u2013 energy sustainability and independence \u2013 can be realised only with healthy American manufacturing to supply growing US demand,\u201d Stein said in a statement.
Suniva and SolarWorld have themselves to blame for their struggles \u2013 not pressure from overseas, Hopper said.
\u201cHere is the real story of this case: We have two foreign-owned, poorly managed companies using US trade laws to put US manufacturers out of business and causing US employees to lose their jobs,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n