Apparently it’s ok for the US to subsidize solar but if another country does so on a bigger scale, then it is so totally wrong, says Abound Solar CEO
Chinese competition was backed, [Abound CEO Craig] Witsoe said, by “over $30 billion in reported government subsidies” and was therefore “able to sell below cost and put Abound out of business before we were big enough to pose a real competitive threat.”
There is a growing trade war between China and the US on solar. We are imposing punitive tariffs on solar panels coming from China while they may do the same on silicon imported from here to make the panels. This will only raise the cost of solar installations in the US. No one wins in trade wars.
I’m only going to say this once more, because I’ve said it before……If we impose tariffs on imported Chinese solar panels and they in response impose tariffs on the silicon that we sell to them so they can manufacture solar panels, this will make the price of imported Chinese solar panels more than the price of US made solar panels. We win, they loose.
But that raises the price of solar installations here so the homeowner loses
But that raises the price of solar installations here so the homeowner loses