Chinese manufacturers seem to have made too many solar panels, according to the US, the European Union, and their allies. They’re now calling on Beijing to rein in the overcapacity of the panels and other goods, raising prospects of a trade war.
China’s facing its own overproduction problem at home following a breakneck pace of growth in solar energy — one key pillar of the country’s “new three” economic drivers. Reuters reported that China had installed so many solar panels that they were generating excess power that the country didn’t have storage or transmission capacity for.
In March, Longi Green Energy Technology, the world’s largest solar-cell manufacturer, announced it was laying off thousands of workers amid overcapacity and low prices.
Earlier this month, US President Joe Biden announced he would double tariffs on Chinese solar-cell imports from 25% to 50%.
Germany, too, has been producing so much solar energy that energy prices have fallen into negative territory when output peaks.