The federal agency decided to preserve existing antidumping and countervailing duties following a sunset review.
The U.S. International Trade Commission voted to maintain trade protections on crystalline silicon photovoltaic products. The targeted trade penalties “counteract foreign market distortions” by applying antidumping duties on underpriced imports and countervailing duties to offset foreign government subsidies.
Initial duties established during the original 2014 investigations reached rates as high as 165% for certain Chinese entities and 44% for Taiwanese exporters, though annual administrative reviews frequently adjust the exact assessment margins for individual manufacturers.
Commission members determined that revoking these current antidumping and countervailing duty orders for Chinese solar imports, alongside the antidumping duty on Taiwanese imports, would cause material injury to domestic manufacturers to continue or recur.
Chair Amy A. Karpel and Commissioners David S. Johanson and Jason E. Kearns voted in favor of the continuation during an expedited five-year sunset review. The regulatory history of this mechanism dictates that the Department of Commerce must lift trade penalties after five years unless both agencies conclude that termination would harm the domestic sector.
