South Korea files WTO complaint over US solar tariffs

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
Credit: Hanwha Q CELLS

South Korea has requested consultations with the US government over its newly announced solar import tariffs, threatening legal action at the World Trade Organization (WTO) if the dispute, including an appeal for compensation, is not resolved.

Seoul has also filed the same complaints over the US government’s tariff on washing machine imports, according to documents published by the WTO.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Unlock unlimited access for 12 whole months of distinctive global analysis

Photovoltaics International is now included.

  • Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
  • In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
  • Unlimited digital access to the PV Tech Power journal catalogue
  • Unlimited digital access to the Photovoltaics International journal catalogue
  • Access to more than 1,000 technical papers
  • Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual

Or continue reading this article for free

Immediately after Trump’s announcement, South Korea's trade minister Kim Hyun-chong had said his government would actively deal with the protectionist move and expressed confidence in winning a WTO petition given the results of past cases. Indeed the last Section 201 case regarding steel tariffs imposed by the US, was overturned by the WTO in 2003.

In its filing, the Delegation of Korea said that it considers Trump’s decision to levy both new tariffs to be “inconsistent” with WTO rules, specifically under several articles of the General Agreement on Tariffs, GATT 1994 and the Agreement on Safeguards.

The Asian country also noted that the Agreement on Safeguards requires an adequate opportunity for prior consultations before application of a measure, but did not disclose whether it deemed the time between the announcement and the application of the tariffs to be sufficient.

The note ended: “Korea looks forward to a prompt reply of the United States in order to set a mutually convenient date and venue for these consultations.”

The US has 30 days to settle the matter, after which South Korea has a 60-day window to impose trade sanctions, if the US measures break WTO rules, according to Reuters.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) has also today announced that the second round of negotiations on amendments of the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (KORUS FTA) will take place in Seoul on 31 January 31 and 1 February 2018.

7 October 2025
San Francisco Bay Area, USA
PV Tech has been running an annual PV CellTech Conference since 2016. PV CellTech USA, on 7-8 October 2025 is our third PV CellTech conference dedicated to the U.S. manufacturing sector. The events in 2023 and 2024 were a sell out success and 2025 will once again gather the key stakeholders from PV manufacturing, equipment/materials, policy-making and strategy, capital equipment investment and all interested downstream channels and third-party entities. The goal is simple: to map out PV manufacturing in the U.S. out to 2030 and beyond.
21 October 2025
New York, USA
Returning for its 12th edition, Solar and Storage Finance USA Summit remains the annual event where decision-makers at the forefront of solar and storage projects across the United States and capital converge. Featuring the most active solar and storage transactors, join us for a packed two-days of deal-making, learning and networking.

Read Next

June 25, 2025
First Solar has sold US$311.8 million in tax credits to “a leading financial institution” under the rules set out in the IRA.
June 25, 2025
Spanish energy utility giant Iberdrola has appointed the former CEO of its US renewable energy development subsidiary, Avangrid, as its new head.
June 25, 2025
US EPC contractor SOLV Energy has acquired high-voltage (HV) transmission contractor Arizona-based Spartan Infrastructure.
June 24, 2025
US IPP BrightNight and Canadian asset manager Cordelio Power have reached commercial operations at a 300MW solar PV plant in Arizona, US.
June 24, 2025
US solar tracker manufacturer GameChange Solar has signed a deal to supply trackers to 715MWp worth of solar PV capacity across South America.
June 20, 2025
Utility giant Engie North America has incorporated a precycling provision to incorporate solar panel and project component recycling into power purchase agreements (PPA) at four solar PV plants across the Midwest, US.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Upcoming Webinars
June 30, 2025
10am PST / 6pm BST
Solar Media Events
July 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
July 1, 2025
London, UK
Media Partners, Solar Media Events
July 2, 2025
Bangkok, Thailand
Media Partners, Solar Media Events
September 2, 2025
Mexico City, Mexico