Tariffs may hurt solar panel industry
The tariffs could hurt foreign solar panel makers and foreign and American distributors, and strain trade relations between the United States and China, the newspaper reported.
According to the article, U.S. customs decided early this year that because the panels contain a basic electronic device for safety and energy efficiency, they would be treated as electric generators, subject to a duty of 2.5 percent.
The decision is legally binding on most solar panels imported into the United States, the newspaper reported, noting that no one in the industry became aware of it until the last few weeks.
In the meantime, unpaid duties piled up, along with penalties that are likely to double the cost, according to the article.
The Solar Energy Industries Association, a coalition of domestic and foreign companies, argues that American tariffs on solar panels could lead other countries to impose tariffs on American exports, the article said.
Related News
US looks to decommission Alaskan military reactor
WASHINGTON - The US Army Corps of Engineers has begun decommissioning Alaska’s only nuclear power plant, SM-1A, which is located at Fort Greely. The $17m plant closed in 1972 after ten years of sporadic operation. It was out of commission from 1967 to 1969 for extensive repairs. Much of has already been dismantled and sent for disposal, and the rest, which is encased in concrete, is now to be removed.
The plant was built as part of an experimental programme to determine whether nuclear facilities could be built and operated at remote sites more cheaply than diesel-fuelled plants.
"The main approach was…
