PVTIME – On 12 August 2024, the White House announced a positive adjustment to strengthen America’s solar industry by expanding the tariff rate quota on imports of certain crystalline silicon solar cells.
To support American solar manufacturers, President Joe Biden issued a proclamation increasing the tariff rate quota for crystalline silicon cells from 5GW to 12.5GW per year, with the new strategic move taking effect on or after 1 August 2024. A higher volume of crystalline silicon products, including solar cells and modules, will then be imported under the HTS without triggering additional safeguard tariffs.
This expansion is seen as necessary to benefit the US solar industry, which currently relies on imported solar cells to meet growing demand for solar deployment while domestic production is insufficient.
The original policy, implemented in January 2018 under the Trump administration, imposed tariffs and quotas on imports of crystalline silicon cells to protect producers from a surge of low-cost foreign products in America. However, the Biden administration sees this change as part of a broader strategy to accelerate the transition to clean energy while supporting American jobs. As the nation strives to meet its ambitious climate goals, maintaining a steady supply of solar products is seen as critical to the expansion of renewable energy infrastructure.
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