Bankrupt U.S. solar panel maker Suniva on Wednesday asked federal trade officials to recommend new duties on imported solar products to combat a global oversupply of panels that has depressed prices and made American producers unable to compete.
The company, which was founded in Georgia but sold a majority stake to Hong Kong-based Shunfeng International Clean Energy (1165.HK) in 2015, filed a rare Section 201 petition with the U.S. International Trade Commission nine days after seeking Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
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Under Section 201, Suniva must convince the ITC that the U.S. industry has suffered "serious injury" because of imports. If it does, then the Commission could recommend relief measures to the president such as tariffs or volume limitations.
President Trump would make a final decision on whether to provide relief and, if so, what type. Final approval from the president is a key difference in the Section 201 process compared with prior solar trade cases.
I know there are some people who think that Section 201 can't function under the constraints imposed by the Appellate Body, and perhaps this is why we haven't seen cases filed for a while. This case will be an interesting test for the ITC.
