Domestic Industry Asks for More AD/CV Duties on Solar Cells from China and Taiwan to Close 'Loophole'
Domestic solar panel manufacturer Solar World Industries America on Dec. 31 began a push to strengthen antidumping and countervailing duties on solar cells from China, filing a petition for new AD/CV duties on modules made from third-country solar cells. Solar World says the AD/CV duty orders on crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells, issued in December 2012, leave a “loophole” that’s letting in an increasing amount of Chinese solar modules made from Taiwanese solar cells. The petition seeks to remedy that by imposing AD/CV duties on “crystalline solar photovoltaic products,” which specifically include third-country solar cells, from China and Taiwan.
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“Despite the domestic industry's repeated requests, the Department of Commerce's … final AD/CVD determinations failed to cover Chinese solar modules assembled from non-Chinese solar cells, allowing Chinese solar producers to begin using cells fully or partially manufactured in Taiwan in the modules they assembled for export to the United States, and to export those modules, duty-free, to the U.S. market,” said the petition filed Dec. 31 with Commerce and the International Trade Commission. “As a result, Chinese producers have been using - or claiming to use - Taiwanese and other non-Chinese cells in their module production, even prior to the imposition of preliminary duties in March and May 2012,” it said.
“As a result, the remedy afforded by the first AD/CVD cases was substantially weakened, allowing increasing volumes of subject product to continue shipping large quantities of dumped and subsidized product into the U.S. market during the period,” said Solar World.
Commerce’s AD/CV duty orders in December 2012 imposed AD duty rates of 18.32%-29.14% on Chinese exporters (see 12120633), and CV duty rates of 14.78%-15.97% (see 12120630). When it became apparent the duties would come to fruition a month earlier, domestic industry decried Commerce’s decision not to cover third-country cells (see 12110817). Imports of Chinese solar cells and modules are up by 24 period over the year ended September 2013, and imports of solar cells from Taiwan are up 157 percent over the same period.
“Given the growing vulnerability of the U.S. industry, the industry's very existence will be in peril if AD and CVD orders are not imposed,” said Solar World in its request for new duties.
Scope of Investigation
To remedy the purported loophole, Solar World is asking for Commerce and the ITC to extend coverage of AD/CV duties to include solar cells from Taiwan. It is also requesting the investigation’s scope include modules, laminates and panels made from solar cells made in a third-country that use ingots, wafers, or particularly manufactured in either China or Taiwan. Products already subject to AD/CV duties on solar cells would be specifically excluded. Solar Cell requested the following scope for the investigation:
“The merchandise covered by this investigation is crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells, and modules, laminates and/or panels consisting of crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells, whether or not partially or fully assembled into other products, including building integrated materials. For purposes of this investigation, subject merchandise also includes modules, laminates and/or panels consisting of crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells completed or partially manufactured within a customs territory other than that subject country, using ingots, wafers, or partially manufactured cells sourced from the subject country.
“Subject merchandise includes crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells of thickness equal to or greater than 20 micrometers, having a p/n junction formed by any means, whether or not the cell has undergone other processing, including, but not limited to, cleaning, etching, coating, and/or addition of materials (including, but not limited to, metallization and conductor patterns) to collect and forward the electricity that is generated by the cell.
“Excluded from the scope of this investigation are thin film photovoltaic products produced from amorphous silicon (a-Si), cadmium telluride (CdTe), or copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS). Also excluded from the scope of this investigation are any products covered by the existing antidumping and countervailing duty orders on crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells, whether or not assembled into modules, from the People's Republic of China- case numbers A-570-979 and C-570-980.
“Merchandise covered by this investigation is currently classified in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (‘HTSUS’) under subheadings 8501.61.0000, 8507.20.80, 8541.40.6020 and 8541.40.6030. These HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes; the written description of the scope of this investigation is dispositive.”
Commerce Accepting Comments on Petition Support
The Commerce Department is accepting comments on domestic industry support for the petitions to determine whether the petitions meet the dual requirements of support by domestic producers or workers accounting for (1) at least 25% of the total production of the domestic-like product and (2) more than 50% of the production of the domestic-like product produced by that portion of the industry expressing support for, or opposition to, the petition. If the petitions meet these requirements, among others, Commerce will initiate antidumping and countervailing duty investigations on crystalline silicon photovoltaic products from China (A-570-010/C-570-011) and an antidumping duty investigation on crystalline silicon photovoltaic products from Taiwan (A-583-853). Comments are due by about Jan. 20.
Email ITTNews@warren-news.com for a copy of the petition.