Cell TRQ Doubled, Bifacial Panels Excluded As Solar Safeguard Extended
The threshold for tariff rate quotas will double to 5 GW per year under a four-year extension of Section 201 safeguard tariffs announced by presidential proclamation Feb. 4. The ITC has said imports during the first four years of the safeguard never exceeded the previous 2.5 GW threshold in the first four years the safeguard was in effect, making it unlikely that enough cells will be imported to be subject to the tariffs. Bifacial solar panels will continue to be excluded from the safeguard.
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The annex to the proclamation hasn't yet been published, so it's not clear what the tariff levels will be on solar panels. The International Trade Commission had recommended that tariffs decline 0.25% a year, so if that is followed, the tariff beginning Feb. 7 would be 14.75%.
The proclamation noted that the ITC "advised that increasing the TRQ would help to continue growth in solar module production ... ." There are no solar cells made in the U.S. at this time. The president also asked the U.S. Trade Representative to enter into negotiations with Canada and Mexico, and that she may find that imports from those countries do not undermine the effectiveness of the safeguard, and allow their panels to be imported without facing the safeguard tariffs.