The United States has imposed new tariffs that reach an unprecedented 3,521% on solar energy equipment. The new tariffs for four Southeast Asian countries. On the one hand, this measure promises to play in favor of local manufacturers of such goods, but on the other hand, on the contrary, threatens to become a deterrent to the development of renewable energy in the country, Bloomberg reports.
The tariffs, announced yesterday, are the result of a year-long trade investigation that found that solar equipment manufacturers unfairly receive government subsidies and supply products to the United States at prices below their cost of production. The investigation was initiated by American solar manufacturers and began under former US President Joe Biden.
The tariffs are designed to support American manufacturers of such equipment, but they will also hurt domestic developers of renewable energy systems that have long relied on cheap imports. The result will be increased uncertainty in an industry already shaken by political changes in Washington.
The new tariffs will be in addition to those already imposed by Donald Trump, which have upended global markets and supply chains. Anti-dumping and countervailing duties, as they are called, are intended to offset improperly paid subsidies and unfairly set prices. The promise of subsidies and demand from the Biden administration’s measures to reduce inflation have fueled interest and new investment in solar panel factories that have begun to be built in the United States. But manufacturers warned that even under these favorable conditions, new ventures are threatened by foreign competitors selling their products at below-market prices.
In 2024, the United States imported $12.9 billion worth of solar equipment from four countries, 77% of total imports in this segment. National tariffs for Cambodia, whose authorities refused to cooperate with the investigation, were set at 3,521%. For some companies, tariffs in Vietnam are 395.9%, in Thailand - 375.2%, and the national tariff rate for Malaysia is 34.4%.
Jinko Solar is subject to tariffs of 245% on exports from Vietnam and 40% on exports from Malaysia. Trina Solar’s Thai subsidiary was hit with a 375% tariff, while its Vietnamese subsidiary was hit with a tariff of more than 200%. Equipment from Vietnamese JA Solar is subject to tariffs of about 120%.
However, the new measures had only a minor impact on the shares of all these Chinese companies: Trina shares fell by 1.6%, Jinko shares by 0.9% and JA Solar shares by 0.1%. The fact is that the decision of the US authorities was largely expected, and the companies themselves transferred part of their production capacities to duty-free countries, including Indonesia and Laos. Therefore, India, Indonesia and Laos are threatened with new tariffs this year, experts believe.