At issue are imports of crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells — and modules made with them — from Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam, countries which provide the bulk of US supply of that equipment today. Those nations provide the bulk of US solar cell and module imports. The announcement comes nearly two months after the US agency issued preliminary findings from a separate but related probe that the solar imports from Southeast Asia are unfairly benefiting from government aid.
Solar imports from Southeast Asia are being unfairly sold in the US below their production costs, according to initial findings of a Commerce Department review that laid out duties of as much as 271% to counteract the practice.
The preliminary determination released Friday marks another victory for US solar panel makers that argued those cheap imports are harming their business and undermining government investments meant to nurture a domestic supply chain.
