Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo appeared before a Senate committee on April 27 to present her agency's budget request for the upcoming fiscal year.
The annual tradition for federal department heads can be mundane. But Raimondo's testimony, and that of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm a week later, served as the first opportunities for lawmakers to grill those closest to the Auxin Solar tariff petition.
Raimondo told the Senate Commerce Committee that her "hands are tied" when it comes to her agency's statute-requiring investigation of Auxin's claim that solar module manufacturers in Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Cambodia are circumventing trade laws against China.
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"I'm required by statute to investigate a claim that companies operating in other countries are trying to circumvent the duties, and I'm required by statute to have a fulsome investigation," Raimondo testified. "What I will commit to you is moving as fast as possible, consistent with the statute, to conduct that investigation. I understand you need certainty, but I have to follow the statute."
When Granholm was pressed by the Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee on May 5, she sought to reiterate President Biden's support for incentives for domestic solar manufacturing included in the Solar Energy Manufacturing for America (SEMA) Act.
Under further pressure, however, Granholm said that the U.S. solar industry as we know it is at risk of crumbling under the Commerce investigation and, potentially, additional tariffs. She said that Biden's own goal to achieve 100% clean electricity by 2035 could also be in jeopardy if the case isn't resolved quickly.
"At stake is the complete smothering of the investment and the jobs and the independence that we would be seeking as a nation to get our fuel from our own generation sources," Granholm said. "I certainly am deeply concerned," she said while acknowledging that the investigation is underway at a separate federal agency.
Commerce sought to more clearly define the scope of its investigation into the Auxin Solar tariff petition.
In a memo dated May 2, Commerce trade analysts requested comment from "all interested parties" on any requirements that may be put in place in the event of an affirmative preliminary or final determination.
Commerce also sought to reiterate that wafers produced outside of China with Chinese-sourced polysilicon are not subject to the trade case, since several critical stages are included in the wafer production process.
However, the case does center on Chinese-origin wafers used in the completion of solar cells or modules in Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, and Malaysia that were supplied by a Chinese manufacturer with a company-specific rate.
Commerce is expected to issue a preliminary finding on the Auxin Solar tariff petition within 150 days of launching the investigation, which began on March 25. Even before a ruling is issued, however, the solar industry has warned that more than half of expected projects for 2022 could be delayed or canceled because of uncertainty and fears of retroactive duties.
