US Department of Commerce Asks for 2nd Extension of Investigation of Illegal Chinese Solar Subsidies

The Coalition for American Solar Manufacturing (CASM), seven U.S. manufacturers of crystalline silicon solar cells and panels and its more than 150 associate members representing more than 11,000 employees, today released the following statement in response to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s second extension of its preliminary determination in its investigation into whether to impose duties to offset the effects of any illegal Chinese subsidies.  The new deadline for the preliminary determination is March 2, 2012. If Commerce finds so-called critical circumstances in the form of an evasive surge of Chinese imports ahead of its determination, it could make countervailing duties retroactive to December 3, 2011.
 
“Extensions of the preliminary deadline are common in trade investigations,” said Gordon Brinser, president of SolarWorld Industries America Inc., based in Oregon. “The Department of Commerce requested SolarWorld to ask for this brief additional extension to allow Commerce sufficient time to conduct a comprehensive investigation and to complete a thorough and fair analysis of the subsidies at issue. Commerce also has been hampered by slow responses from the Chinese respondents.  SolarWorld and its CASM partners look forward to results of the Commerce’s investigation and to a successful outcome for U.S. workers and American solar manufacturing.”
 
The Coalition for American Solar Manufacturing
www.americansolarmanufacturing.org