WASHINGTON — The Coalition for a Prosperous America (CPA) today released a report titled, “Reclaiming the US Solar Supply Chain from China.” The white paper documents the current state of the US solar manufacturing industry and provides key recommendations for policymakers on how to counter Chinese dominance over the global supply chain that threatens US energy independence and US technology leadership in this critical industry of the future.
Read the full report here and a one-pager with key findings and policy recommendations here.
“This new report from the CPA Economics Team documents for the first time the enormous strides the US solar module industry has achieved in growing production and market share,” said CPA Chief Economist Jeff Ferry. “We also look at the China chokehold on upstream parts of the solar supply chain and what the US government must do to enable the entire US solar industry to grow and become fully self-sufficient so this vital source of renewable energy will not be dependent on untrustworthy sources of supply.”
“Not only is the Chinese Communist Party taking steps to dominate the global solar supply chain, but they are also heavily polluting and using forced labor in Xinjiang to do it,” Michael Stumo, CEO of the CPA, said. “We cannot replace dependence upon the Middle East for oil with dependence upon China for renewable energy equipment. The conventional energy supply chain includes many good paying manufacturing jobs to build the equipment and install it. Building Back Better means that the renewable energy supply chain also utilizes US companies and workers.”
Read “Reclaiming the US Solar Supply Chain from China” here.
Key Findings:
- Several US solar module manufacturers have ramped up production substantially in the last three years under the stimulus of the Section 201 safeguard tariffs on solar module imports, leading U.S producers to achieve a 10-year high in market share of 19.8% in 2019.
- The Section 201 solar tariffs have had no negative impact on the US market for solar energy installations, which grew 43% in 2020. Solar installations are set to be more than 50% greater than they were expected to be prior to the implementation of the 201 tariffs in 2017.
-
Chinese dominance continues to threaten US leadership.
- China dominates 64% of the polysilicon market, rising to 75% by 2023.
- China has a chokehold on the ingot and wafer production with 99% of the market share.
- The Chinese have invested at least $47 billion in solar power since 2005.
- At least 100 US companies have been put out of business, amounting to a loss of $10 billion in investment and thousands of jobs.
Key Policy Recommendations:
- A “Made-in-USA solar tax credit” available to US-based solar manufacturers based on the US value-added in their product and their annual sales.
- Strengthened Buy American policies requiring the federal government to buy only US-made solar equipment AND power generated only from US-made solar equipment.
- Ban products made with Xinjiang forced labor.
- Persistent, long-term tariffs on all inputs in the solar supply chain.
- Dedicated federal research and development support.
- Increased support for STEM education.
Media Contact:
Nick Iacovella, Communications Director
[email protected]
(202) 688-5145 ext. 0
###
