A Single Company is Threatening the Domestic Solar Industry
Auxin Solar, a single company representing less than 3% of the U.S. module market, is attempting – without the support of a single other domestic manufacturing company – to manipulate U.S. trade laws to gain a competitive advantage. Auxin has asked the Department of Commerce to apply cost-prohibitive tariffs of up to 250% on solar products imported from four allied trading partners in Southeast Asia – Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia.
Eighty percent (80%) of imported solar panels are sourced from these four countries. These solar panels are vital to supporting the 230,000 American solar jobs that exist today, including tens of thousands of manufacturing jobs for other essential solar components.
The Immediate Chilling Impact on the U.S. Solar Industry
Commerce has agreed to initiate a review of Auxin’s petition, and in past cases, it has typically taken 150 days or longer to issue a ruling despite having broad discretion to move faster. Merely initiating the investigation has frozen the domestic solar industry, and each passing day worsens the impacts on American workers and American households.
The potential tariffs that could be applied in this case could reasonably be as high as 250% and – importantly – would be retroactive back to April 1st, 2022. As a result, any solar panel imported between today and a ruling by Commerce carries a cost so astronomical that the manufacturers in the target countries have been forced to cease producing or importing solar panels destined for U.S. projects.
The American Clean Power Association issued a market impact survey to gather a sample of the impacts this inquiry is already having on crystalline-silicon PV projects. Initial sampling based on input from over 150 different solar projects across the country show that over 24 GW of projects are at risk for cancellation or delay across 2022- 2023 The full economy-wide impact is likely substantially higher.
Without swift resolution:

Commerce has Broad Discretion to Put an End to this Egregious Case and Save Solar Jobs
Secretary Raimondo rightfully declined to initiate a strikingly similar petition brought in 2021, further solidifying the point that this case is also not worthy of further investigation. The Secretary has broad discretion in her administration of these proceedings, including the ability to issue a negative ruling as soon as 45 days following the initiation of the inquiry.
There has never been a more crucial time to support clean, domestic, reliable, and affordable energy. The Biden Administration has set bold targets for clean energy deployment and now they must back those commitments up with tangible policies and actions to meet those goals.