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China protests US punitive duties on its solar exports
By Richard Fu |
May 18, 2012, Friday
|
Online Edition
Online Edition
A Chinese industry group denounced a US decision to impose additional punitive duties of 31 percent or more on China's solar products, calling the ruling a protectionist move that's unfair and irrational.
The US Department of Commerce yesterday said in a preliminary ruling that Chinese exporters dumped solar cells and modules at margins from 31 percent to 250 percent, echoing the complaints of some American solar companies.
In a statement released today, the Chinese Renewable Energy Industries Association said it is "firmly opposed" to the US decision and called on Chinese manufacturers, who hold more than half of the global market, to appeal the US government ruling.
"The preliminary ruling by the US Department of Commerce was made regardless the fact that the advance of technology and large-scale production have pushed down the costs of solar products," the association said.
The US used the production costs in Thailand which produced about 0.1 gigawatts of solar panels last year as a proxy for costs in China which produced 15GW of solar panels last year in its anti-dumping investigation, according to Li Junfeng, president of the association and an official of China's National Development and Reform Commission.
"This does not comfort to market rules as they chose a market that almost has no solar-panel manufacturing capacity as a benchmark to judge Chinese products sold below its production cost," Li said in Shanghai.
"These duties do not reflect the reality of a highly-competitive solar industry in the world. Suntech has consistently maintained a positive gross margin as revenues are higher than our cost of production," said Andrew Beebe, the chief commercial officer of Suntech Power Holdings Co, which was told to pay a 31.22 percent anti-dumping tax.
The anti-dumping tax would be combined with a up to 4.73 percent anti-subsidy tax imposed earlier this year on solar panels from China. They are higher than expected and could ratchet up trade tensions between the two countries.
US President Barack Obama has targeted what he says unfair Chinese trade practices to help his re-election in November.
Li said China doesn't expect to engage in a trade war with the US but if the anti-dumping fees were upheld, it's unavoidable that China will take counter-measures.
The national trade association of the US solar industry also called upon the two governments to immediately work together towards a mutually satisfactory resolution of the growing trade conflict.
"The US solar manufacturing base goes well beyond solar cell and module production and includes billions of dollars of recent investments into the production of polysilicon, polymers, and solar manufacturing equipment, products which are largely destined for export. If the US-China solar trade disputes continue to escalate, it will jeopardize these US investments," said Rhone Resch, president of the US Solar Energy Industries Association.
The US Department of Commerce yesterday said in a preliminary ruling that Chinese exporters dumped solar cells and modules at margins from 31 percent to 250 percent, echoing the complaints of some American solar companies.
In a statement released today, the Chinese Renewable Energy Industries Association said it is "firmly opposed" to the US decision and called on Chinese manufacturers, who hold more than half of the global market, to appeal the US government ruling.
"The preliminary ruling by the US Department of Commerce was made regardless the fact that the advance of technology and large-scale production have pushed down the costs of solar products," the association said.
The US used the production costs in Thailand which produced about 0.1 gigawatts of solar panels last year as a proxy for costs in China which produced 15GW of solar panels last year in its anti-dumping investigation, according to Li Junfeng, president of the association and an official of China's National Development and Reform Commission.
"This does not comfort to market rules as they chose a market that almost has no solar-panel manufacturing capacity as a benchmark to judge Chinese products sold below its production cost," Li said in Shanghai.
"These duties do not reflect the reality of a highly-competitive solar industry in the world. Suntech has consistently maintained a positive gross margin as revenues are higher than our cost of production," said Andrew Beebe, the chief commercial officer of Suntech Power Holdings Co, which was told to pay a 31.22 percent anti-dumping tax.
The anti-dumping tax would be combined with a up to 4.73 percent anti-subsidy tax imposed earlier this year on solar panels from China. They are higher than expected and could ratchet up trade tensions between the two countries.
US President Barack Obama has targeted what he says unfair Chinese trade practices to help his re-election in November.
Li said China doesn't expect to engage in a trade war with the US but if the anti-dumping fees were upheld, it's unavoidable that China will take counter-measures.
The national trade association of the US solar industry also called upon the two governments to immediately work together towards a mutually satisfactory resolution of the growing trade conflict.
"The US solar manufacturing base goes well beyond solar cell and module production and includes billions of dollars of recent investments into the production of polysilicon, polymers, and solar manufacturing equipment, products which are largely destined for export. If the US-China solar trade disputes continue to escalate, it will jeopardize these US investments," said Rhone Resch, president of the US Solar Energy Industries Association.
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