In a bid to protect domestic U.S. solar manufacturers, President Trump has imposed a 30% Tariff on imported solar panels. The Tariff was enacted after the U.S. International Trade Commission found that imported panels had caused serious injury to domestic manufacturers, according to U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer.
In the first year, a 30% tariff will be imposed on imported solar cells and modules, 25% in the second year , 20% in the third year and 15% in the fourth year. In each of the four years, the first 2.5 gigawatts of imported solar cells will be free of tariffs.
The move is highly controversial with some predicting the entire solar industry could suffer a serious decline. The price of solar had dropped by over 30% since 2016 and many in the solar industry are very worried about the effect the Tariff will have on the price of both solar equipment and jobs.
The Solar Energy Industries Association, which fought bitterly against the tariff, reacted in a statement through its website, “The decision effectively will cause the loss of roughly 23,000 American jobs this year, including many in manufacturing, and it will result in the delay or cancellation of billions of dollars in solar investments.”
Solar industry heavy weight Tesla, will be fairly insulated against the tariff since they produce their own panels at the solar gigafactory in Buffalo, New York.