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Nov 4, 2020

U.S. Trade Court Blocks Trump Administration Bid to End Solar Tariff Loophole

Tariffs

On Saturday, October 24, a U.S. Trade Court temporarily blocked the Trump administrations’ attempt to close a tariff loophole for double-sided solar panels.  The 2018 tariffs were an attempt by the Trump administration to get tough on China which dominates the solar panel manufacturing industry, and to boost the U.S. industry.  The administration approved four years of tariffs on solar panel imports, starting at 30%, and being reduced by five percentage points each subsequent year.  The tariffs granted the exclusion for bifacial panels, as those panels were considered a niche product at the time.  The administration now claims that it… Read more


Oct 8, 2019

Trump Administration Withdraws Tariff Exemption for Bifacial Solar Panels

The Trump Administration announced that effective October 28, it will be eliminating a loophole granted four months ago on tariffs for bifacial solar panels. The panels will now be subject to the 25% tariff on imported solar cells and modules that the Trump Administration announced in early 2018. The tariffs on imported solar equipment, introduced in January 2018 at 30% and stepping down by 5% every year until they expire in 2022, were part of the Trump Administration’s trade tariffs targeted against China, the current global leader in solar panel manufacturing. While the rescission is expected to benefit American panel… Read more