US slaps up to 3,403% tariffs on solar panels from Southeast Asia

The US Department of Commerce has finalized tariffs as high as 3,403.96% on solar products from four Southeast Asian countries, according to a statement released Monday.

The department said final determinations were made in antidumping and countervailing duty investigations involving crystalline photovoltaic cells imported from Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Solar cell and panel imports will face duties varying according to the products' country of origin with tariffs reaching up to 3,403.96% for Cambodia, 799.55% for Thailand, 542.64% for Vietnam, and 168.80% for Malaysia.

The Commerce Department concluded that solar cells and panels from these countries were being sold in the US at less than fair value -- a practice known as dumping -- and that manufacturers were benefiting from unfair subsidies, harming American producers.

Company-specific rates are being applied to several large manufacturers, including Hounen Solar, Trina Solar Science & Technology, and Jinko Solar Technology. The final decision follows two preliminary rulings in response to a trade lawsuit filed by US corporations last year.

The Southeast Asian-based Chinese businesses were accused by the American Alliance for Solar Manufacturing Trade Committee of obtaining unfair subsidies that render American solar panels uncompetitive and of selling solar components at lower prices than the US market.

In what is perceived as an effort to get around US tariffs on direct imports from China, the Chinese-owned solar manufacturing plants have sprung up throughout Southeast Asia, which has emerged as a major supplier to the US solar industry.