A bipartisan group of lawmakers has introduced legislation
that would throw out Trump administration tariffs on imported solar products.
"Under this legislation, duties and tariffs would
default back to previous rates and would allow companies that imported any affected
solar products under this new tariff to receive retroactive
reimbursement," according to a press release.
The bill (HB 5571) was filed Thursday by Rep. Jacky Rosen (D-Nevada)
as a way to protect renewable energy jobs in her home state. According to
Rosen, President Trump's 30 percent tariff on foreign-made solar modules has
threatened the stability of Nevada's fast-growing solar industry.
"An attack on solar energy is an attack on the
countless hardworking Nevadans who benefit from this growing industry,"
Rosen said in a statement. "My new bill will reverse this damaging
decision.”
The Protecting Solar Jobs Act was introduced in the
House Committee on Ways and Means with backing from Rep. Jared Huffman
(D-Calif.), Rep. Mark Sanford (R-SC), Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC) and Rep. Steve
Knight (R-Calif.).
Sanford, an outspoken critic of the president's
protectionist trade agenda, noted that strong solar industry growth has led to
more than 7,000 jobs in South Carolina's solar sector — jobs now at risk
because of the tariffs.
"A tariff is a tax, and I don't know what good can
possibly come as a consequence of stifling the growth of solar power,"
Sanford said on Thursday. "Solar power is one of the cheapest and
fastest-growing renewable energy sources, and if we are really focused on
becoming energy-independent, now is no time to slow its growth."
According to the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA),
the 30 percent tariff on imported solar cells and panels could cause the loss
of up to 23,000 American jobs in 2018, as well as delay or erase billions of
dollars' worth of solar investments. According to GTM Research, the tariff will
cause a roughly 11
percent net reduction in U.S. solar installations from 2018 to
2022 — which translates to a 7.6-gigawatt reduction in installed
solar PV capacity over the next five years.
Abigail Ross Hopper, SEIA president and CEO, threw her
support behind the new bill.
“This bipartisan legislation is an important step in
countering the harmful impact of tariffs on the solar industry,” said Ross
Hopper, in a statement. “Across the country, the rise of solar has generated
thousands of new jobs and provided communities with clean, sustainable power.
It is clear that solar is the energy of choice for Americans and we must do
what we can to allow this economic engine to continue to advance here in the
U.S.”
Speaking last week at the Bloomberg New Energy Finance
Summit, Ross Hopper acknowledged that the solar tariffs were "more a punch
to the gut than a complete decapitation." Still, around 20 solar companies
have come forward so far with specific examples of how the tariffs have led to
layoffs, stalled investments or project cancellations.
Over the course of this year, the industry will see “what
could have been versus what will be," she said.
According to Morten Lund, partner in the energy group
at law firm Stoel Rives, the newly introduced House bill could renew
interest in making solar investments in Texas, Utah and other price-marginal
markets, if passed. The bill could also lead to the cancellation of proposed
new module assembly facilities in the U.S.
That list includes the $50 million factory Chinese
manufacturer JinkoSolar
plans to build in Florida, and U.S. firm SunPower's
plans to acquire solar manufacturer SolarWorld Americas — one of
the petitioners in the Section 201 solar trade case.
Shane Skelton, former energy policy adviser to Paul Ryan and
partner at consulting firm S2C Pacific, doesn't think the bill is going
anywhere.
“I think it has absolutely zero legs," he said.
According to Skelton, free market Republicans are currently laser focused on
making changes to NAFTA, and have very little political appetite to push back
against the president on solar tariffs.
“I don’t see them spending any political capital or wasting
30 minutes of committee time on this," he said.
As HB 5571 waits to see further action, a
lawsuit against the tariffs brought by Canadian solar companies
continues to move forward. At the same time, at least five U.S. trading
partners have lodged
complaints at the World Trade Organization.
No comments:
Post a Comment