solar tarrifs

Tariffs and countervailing duties have long been used to balance trade. If China is taking all our stuff because they subsidize their domestic manufacturers, then we need to apply tariffs and duties to prevent them from driving our domestic producers out of business. The fact that Obama is doing this, or that it is being applied to solar panels is not pertinent. There are laws and procedures that have been in place for quite a long time that allow domestic manufacturers to get relief from unfair foreign trade practices, like most of China's trade practices. China is not likely to follow suit, any more than they have in the past. We are inextricably entwined with China, but they want our domestic economy to be healthy for now, so they can keep shipping our economy over there. Buy American - or at least Boycott China.

As a case in point, they undercut our rare earth production so much, that domestic mines went out of business. Now that we are dependent on Chinese rare earth, they are reducing exports to all markets until we cough up concessions. How is that right? The same may happen with this market as well.

 

My personal priority would be to get the cheaper solar to get more installed.
Congress is always looking to boost US jobs. They put all kinds of boundaries in the laws that basically keep big companies and foreign countries out of the game, to favor new US businesses.

 

There is one aspect of this totally overlooked. That is the solar imbalance is equalized when all the solar cell foundry equipment and Silicon bought by China from US manufacturers is included. That was about 1.7 billion $ in 2010 according to the SEIA.

So tariff warfare would make solar panel maker happy but would face opposition from solar wafer processing equipment and material companies. It's not clear that the US would be better off.

My approach to this issue is not using tariffs to balance the equation, but require ALL manufacturer of solar panels to meet ALL environmental, safety and waste disposal regulations. No exceptions. Basically, a company, (Chinese, US, German, Canadian, etc.) cannot sell until they have provided proof, every year, that all regulations have been met. That would go a long way to solving so many problems on both side of the pond, yet maintain a free, fairer, and competitive marketplace. Not perfect, but better than tariff warfare.

 

I made sure that our Sunpower panels were made in the U.S. - and I see they still are ...

SunPower Finds Reason to Be Cheerful in US Solar: Jobs and Manufacturing : Greentech Media

I'm thinking it may be bad management ... and not strictly manufacturing cost(s) that drive some U.S. PV manufacturers into an early grave.

 

No matter how cheap Chinese panels are, they are too expensive to an unemployed American. It is incredibly short-sided to toss local industry to the grave if unfair trade practices are the cause.

Let them compete on a level playing field. Of course America was abusive for so long, it is hard to wag our finger at the Chinese now and expect anything but derision and reciprocal threats. The Chinese learned from the best -- the US.

 

yes! i also need one