In yet another twist to the anti-dumping debate in Indian solar industry, the Finance Ministry of India said it is considering suggestions of Director General of Antidumping and Allied Duties to impose duty on solar cell imports.
In a written reply to the Rajya Sabha, Commerce and Industry Nirmala Sitharaman said the recommendations of the “designated authority” or the DGAD are under the consideration of the Ministry of Finance.
DGAD in its recent recommendations has revealed that imports of solar cells, modules and panels from countries like China, Taipei, Malaysia and USA have created an unhealthy competition in the market.
The imported products are sold at a cheaper rate than domestic products, resulting in excessive dumping of these products in India. The domestic industry has suffered material injury due to the dumping.
Based on these facts, DGAD has recommended imposition of anti-dumping duties ranging from USD 0.11 per watt to USD 0.81 per watt on solar imports.
Many countries have imposed anti dumping duties on imported solar products under the multilateral WTO regime.
The statement from Sitharaman is likely to be countered by related Ministries.
Earlier last month Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari asked Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to scrap the proposal to impose anti- dumping duty on solar power gear imports saying the levy will double the cost of the equipment.