Solar groups warn new U.S. trade probe looms – Bloomberg (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Renewable energy advocates are bracing for potential new trade investigations into U.S. solar imports that could lead to additional tariffs on foreign-made panels, Bloomberg reported Friday.

Staff at two trade groups – the American Clean Power Association and the Solar Energy Industries Association – warned their boards last week of a possible new petition to be filed with the U.S. government this month alleging that solar panels from several Asian countries are being dumped in the U.S. at prices below production costs, according to the report.

The complaint reportedly would be distinct from a separate trade probe that last year concluded solar cells and modules completed in Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam were bypassing longstanding duties on equipment from China, but the action likely would target the same countries and could even bring in others.

Guggenheim Partners issued a note Friday discussing the potential for new anti-dumping “petition activity in the U.S. solar industry,” the latest example of hawkish trade talk in the current presidential election season.

Guggenheim says its key takeaway is that more trade policy uncertainty in the U.S. solar market likely is “good news” for First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) and “less good for everyone else in utility-scale solar.”

First Solar (FSLR) finished +1.8% in Friday’s trading, while most solar names posted losses, including Canadian Solar (CSIQ) -7.5%, Enphase Energy (ENPH) -7%, Sunnova Energy (NOVA) -6.8%, SunPower (SPWR) -6.6%, Array Technologies (ARRY) -3.2%, SolarEdge Technologies (SEDG) -3%.

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