New Tariffs Could Undermine America’s Solar Progress, Says Analysis

Potential tariffs resulting from the antidumping and countervailing duty (AD/CVD) investigations into solar cells and modules imported from Southeast Asia could increase costs to a point that restrict solar supply and installations in the U.S.

This is according to the new Clean Energy Associates analysis, commissioned by the American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE), on the potential impacts of tariffs on the solar industry.

The analysis outlines how the U.S. solar sector is currently in good health, but the imposition of AD/CVD duties on solar cells and panels from Southeast Asia could raise U.S.-made module costs by $0.10 per watt and imported module costs by $0.15 per watt. 

It further states that to meet the government’s target of a 50% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, the domestic solar industry must increase from 177 GW of installed capacity to over 500 GW.

“Today, solar is one of the most affordable and reliable energy sources we have to power our economy,” says ACORE President and CEO Ray Long. 

“Injecting uncertainty into the market slows economic growth and the good-paying jobs clean energy creates, undermines U.S. climate objectives, and will inevitably raise energy costs for American families. This is not an appropriate course of action and could unintentionally cede U.S. leadership in the solar industry to other countries.”