SolarWorld always agreed with the premise that Chinese competition was unfair for the U.S. solar module market, but it sounded to us like SolarWorld was still against Suniva’s 201 petition, noting that it preferred that “any action to be taken against unfair trade shall consider all parts of the U.S. solar value chain.” After assessing further, and now that Suniva’s case is being investigated by the ITC, SolarWorld Americas Inc., is joining as a co-petitioner in the Section 201 safeguards case.
“We have hoped and waited for serious proposals for settling the overall U.S. solar industry’s trade tensions with China, but we have received none,” said Juergen Stein, President of SolarWorld Americas. “Therefore, we have decided to join the case to pursue the best remedy available to us to restore fair competition in the U.S. market.”
“The U.S. solar industry cannot afford to give away the future of critical renewable-energy manufacturing industries,” Stein continued. “We must take a stand in favor of preserving intellectual property, production know-how and U.S. manufacturing jobs, all of which have sprung from a vital industry pioneered on U.S. soil since the 1970s.”
Similar to Suniva’s timing, this announcement comes after its management board in Germany decided to file for insolvency proceedings. The company came to the conclusion that due to the ongoing price erosion and the development of the business, it no longer has “a positive going concern prognosis,” is therefore over-indebted and thus obliged to make this move.
“In light of the foregoing, the management board will now immediately file for insolvency proceedings with the competent local court (court of insolvency),” stated the SolarWorld board.
— Solar Builder magazine
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