US solar firms may request duties on China-made solar modules Nuying Huang,Taipei;Jackie Chang,DIGITIMES[Monday 21 May 2012]The anti-dumping duties on China-made solar cells announced by the US government are unlikely to curb price competition of solar modules in the US market.US-based solar firms reportedly plan to demand another investigation against solar modules made in China and sold in the US.
The anti-dumping duties will apply to all solar cells made in China.The duties will still apply for solar modules that use China-made solar cells,but have been assembled outside China.In addition,solar cells made at China-based manufacturing plants owned by,for example,Taiwan-based solar cell makers will still be considered"China-made solar cells".
The anti-dumping duties against China-based solar firms have been seen as ill-considered because there are far more solar module firms than solar cell firms in China.
In addition,it is difficult for US customs to determine the origin of the solar cells in a completed solar module.
Also,China-based solar module firms can obtain solar cells from Taiwan,South Korea,and Malaysia with a limited increase in cost.The anti-dumping duties on China-made solar cells are unlikely to have the strong effect hoped for by US-based firms.
According to Digitimes Research,shipments of solar modules to the US market in first-half 2012 have reached 80%of total US demand in 2012.
