US Finalises Anti-Dumping, Countervailing Duties on Solar Cells from India, Indonesia, Laos
The U.S. Department of Commerce has concluded trade investigations by imposing substantial anti-dumping and countervailing tariffs on imports of crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells originating from India, Indonesia, and Laos. The agency concluded that suppliers across all three countries engaged in unfair market dumping and profited from governmental support, standardizing measures that are poised to elevate domestic procurement expenses.
For Indian manufacturers and exporters, trade officials established a weighted-average anti-dumping rate of 123.04 percent, which reduces to a 107.17 percent required cash deposit rate after adjusting for subsidization factors. A distinct countervailing duty rate of 126.09 percent was assigned to Indian suppliers. Both assessments against India were derived using available facts alongside adverse inferences.
The Indian entities affected by the anti-dumping finding encompass Mundra Solar PV Ltd., Mundra Solar Energy Limited, Premier Energies Photovoltaic Pvt. Ltd., and Kowa Company Ltd., with the identical 123.04 percent tariff also extending to all non-specified Indian exporters. Meanwhile, the 126.09 percent countervailing penalty specifically applies to Mundra Solar PV Ltd., Mundra Solar Energy Limited, and all other Indian producers included under the proceeding.
American demand for Indian-manufactured solar equipment has scaled rapidly in recent years. Cell shipments from India expanded from 232.4 million watts in 2022 to 2.05 billion watts in 2023, eventually climbing to 2.30 billion watts in 2024. In financial terms, U.S. Census Bureau figures show these transactions surged from $83.9 million in 2022 to $760.8 million in 2023, then grew to $792.6 million in 2024.
Indonesian suppliers were similarly hit with elevated trade barriers, including a nationwide weighted-average anti-dumping margin of 94.36 percent applied to PT Blue Sky Solar Indonesia, PT REC Solar Energy Indonesia, and all other exporters. The department noted that this calculation relied on facts available with adverse inferences.
On countervailing duties for Indonesia, PT Blue Sky Solar Indonesia received a 173.70 percent rate, whereas PT REC Solar Energy Indonesia and remaining national exporters were assigned a 73.20 percent tariff. Overall U.S. cell imports from Indonesia scaled up from 499.1 million watts valued at $177.5 million in 2022 to 1.80 billion watts valued at $415.2 million by 2024.
For Laotian imports, officials set a weighted-average dumping margin of 65.43 percent, translating to an effective post-offset cash deposit requirement of 65.03 percent. The decision covers multiple firms, such as Solarspace Technology (Laos) Sole Co., Ltd., SolarSpace Technology (Hong Kong) Limited, JA Solar Vietnam Co. Ltd., Trina Solar Energy Development Pte. Ltd., and Trina Solar Science & Technology (Thailand) Company Limited.
Countervailing duty levels for Laos were established at 82.03 percent for Solarspace Technology (Laos) Sole Co. Ltd. as well as all other domestic producers, while Vietnam Sunergy Joint Stock Company was assigned a higher duty rate of 153.67 percent. Laotian exports experienced dramatic growth, rising from zero incoming shipments in 2022 and just 44,629 watts in 2023 to 1.91 billion watts in 2024, representing approximately $335.7 million in value.
The regulatory process now moves to the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), which is conducting parallel proceedings to determine if these foreign imports have inflicted material harm on domestic solar manufacturers. The underlying legal actions were petitioned by the Alliance for American Solar Manufacturing and Trade, an industry coalition representing First Solar, Mission Solar Energy, and Hanwha Q CELLS USA.
The investigations cover crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells whether unattached or integrated into modules, tracked under case identifiers A-533-942 and C-533-943 for India, A-560-846 and C-560-847 for Indonesia, and A-553-003 and C-553-004 for Laos. Trade data for the determinations was compiled from the U.S. Census Bureau via S&P Global Trade Atlas, covering relevant Harmonized Tariff Schedule entries. The Department of Commerce currently enforces 844 active anti-dumping and countervailing duty orders to shield domestic industries against uncompetitive foreign trade activities.
Originally reported by Energetica India Magazine on Sep 14, 2026.
