US sets initial duties on Indian solar imports at 126%
While the levies are set to benefit domestic manufacturers, they also will pinch American renewable developers
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[SAN FRANCISCO] The Trump administration set preliminary duties, as high as 146 per cent, on solar imports from India, Indonesia and Laos after determining the countries unfairly subsidised manufacturing, a move that will likely benefit US producers but threatens to increase consumer costs.
The US Commerce Department said on Tuesday (Feb 24) that the duties correspond to the subsidies: 126 per cent for India, 86 to 143 per cent for Indonesia and 81 per cent for Laos. The subsidies allow foreign producers to sell exports to the US at rates lower than the cost of production, hurting domestic producers, the US argues.
While the duties are set to benefit domestic manufacturers, they also will pinch US renewable developers that have long relied on inexpensive foreign supplies, heightening uncertainty for a sector whipsawed by political and policy changes in Washington.
And, the duties would be different from US President Donald Trump’s sweeping global tariffs, which the US Supreme Court struck down last week. In response, Trump issued new 10 per cent tariffs that he’s threatened to raise to 15 per cent. The president also had struck a bilateral trade deal with India earlier this month that had sought to reduce economic tensions between the countries.
India, Indonesia and Laos accounted for 57 per cent of solar-module imports to the US in the first half of 2025, according to BloombergNEF. Some developers had shifted to sourcing panels from there after the US imposed steep duties on four South-east Asian countries that had at one point made up the bulk of imports.
The relatively high duty rates will make the US market largely unavailable for Indian solar panel manufacturers, Citi analyst Vikram Bagri wrote in a research note on Tuesday.
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A US solar group, the Alliance for American Solar Manufacturing and Trade, had petitioned Commerce to investigate the subsidies, saying a probe was needed to protect US manufacturing.
“Today’s finding is an important step towards restoring fair competition in the US solar market,” said Tim Brightbill, co-chair of Wiley Rein’s International Trade Practice and lead attorney for the Alliance. “American manufacturers are investing billions of US dollars to rebuild domestic capacity and create good-paying jobs. Those investments cannot succeed if unfairly traded imports are allowed to distort the market.”
The final determination on the investigation is scheduled to be issued on Jul 6. The Commerce Department is conducting a concurrent antidumping duty probe of solar cells imported from India, Indonesia and Laos. BLOOMBERG
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