President Biden is giving the domestic solar panel manufacturing market a break from tariffs on imported solar cells with the latest announcement from the White House.
The president has modified actions taken earlier this year on tariffed crystalline silicon solar (CSPV) imports by increasing the amount of silicon solar cells that can enter the country tariff-free to 12.5 GW. The tariff-rate quota (TRQ) on solar cells under Sec. 201 of the 1974 Trade Act had previously been set at 5 GW.
“I have determined that expected domestic module production and associated imports of CSPV cells have increased such that it is necessary to modify the action taken…by expanding the TRQ to unchanging within-quota quantities of 12.5 GW,” the president said in his latest proclamation.
Imports of solar cells increased significantly in Q2 2024, with monthly imports exceeding 1 GW for the first time in May. After only importing 3.6 GW of silicon cells in 2023, U.S. panel assemblers surpassed the 5-GW TRQ in June 2024 when imports hit 5.2 GW for the year.
Under the Sec. 201 tariffs, all imported solar cells and panels (regardless of country of origin, except for a few minor exceptions) are currently tariffed at 14.25% as a way to protect domestic solar panel manufacturers from cheaper product coming from overseas. Both monofacial and bifacial solar cells and panels are tariffed. But now, the first 12.5 GW of solar cells imported can come through tariff-free.
Domestic panel manufacturers Hanwha Qcells, First Solar, Heliene, Suniva, Silfab, Crossroads Solar, Mission Solar and Auxin Solar petitioned the government earlier this year to extend the Sec. 201 tariffs and include bifacial panels in the order. Some of the petitioners requested a 20-GW TRQ, but the Biden Administration dialed it back to 12.5 GW.
With more domestic solar panel assemblers coming online this year, more solar cells will need to be imported to make completed panels. Until solar cell manufacturing is established in the country, of which there are currently no outfits online, panel assemblers are dependent on imported cells.