EU members okay 2-year duties on Chinese solar panel imports

Dec 2, 2013 - The European Union (EU) member states have voted to impose anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties on Chinese imports of solar panels for two years, starting December 6, 2013, the EU Commission said in a statement today.

Only companies that have not adopted the price undertakings agreed earlier in the summer with the EU will face the punitive levies that stand at between 27.3% and 64.9% for dumping and 3.5% to 11.5% for illegal subsidies.

In August the Alliance for Affordable Solar Energy (AFASE) said that about 90 Chinese solar product producers or exporters have accepted the price undertaking deal, which sets minimum import price for modules and a maximum import quota.

According to statistics, China held a market share of more than 80% of the EU solar market in 2011/12 which was expected to keep growing. The EU calculates that between 2009 and July 2012 some 40 EU solar product producers have filed for insolvency, six EU producers have shut down plants, two have exited the solar segment and four have been acquired by Chinese investors.

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