US finalises AD/CVD duties on solar cell imports from India, Indonesia and Laos

For India, DoC determined a final dumping margin of 123.04% for all producers and exporters, based on adverse facts available, alongside a final CVD rate of 126.09%. This levies a combined rate of 249.13% before consideration of other applicable US tariffs.

Mundra Solar PV, Mundra Solar Energy, Kowa Company and Premier Energies Photovoltaic all received the same 123.04% dumping margin and 107.17% cash deposit rate adjusted for subsidy offsets.

The rates represent a substantial escalation in trade barriers for Indian solar manufacturers seeking access to the US market.

Premier Energies’ chief business officer Vinay Rustagi told PV Tech, “The US has been a prime export focus for Indian cell and module manufacturers but the market has become unpredictable because of multiple changes in the tariff regime. There are still too many loose ends but we hope that the proposed FTA, which is in advanced stages of negotiation between the two countries, will provide necessary clarity and a suitable way forward for exports from India. We are responding to the US authorities, with suitable support from the Indian government, to protect our interests.”

For Indonesia, Commerce established a 94.36% final dumping margin for PT Blue Sky Solar Indonesia, PT REC Solar Energy Indonesia and all other producers. CVD rates range from 73.20% for PT REC Solar Energy Indonesia and all others to 173.70% for PT Blue Sky Solar Indonesia.

Laos faced a 65.43% final dumping margin across the named exporters and the Laos-wide entity. Final CVD rates range from 82.03% for Solarspace Technology (Laos) and all others to 153.67% for Vietnam Sunergy Joint Stock Company.

The final cash deposit rate for the Laos dumping determination, adjusted for subsidy offsets, is 65.03%.

“The release of the final rates will likely stop cell imports from these countries. For Indonesia and Laos, this will likely result in the closure of some or most of these facilities, unless they can be repurposed to serve certain projects in Europe,” said Joe Hennessy, market research analyst, PV Tech Research.

“For India, the impact will likely be a reduction in demand, but many manufacturers there were not shipping to the US over the past year, so the effect on most of them will be minimal. With ALMM mandates covering both cells and modules, Indian manufacturers have been focusing on supplying the domestic market first.”

Echoing this sentiment, Prabhakar Sharma, senior consultant, JMK Research & Analytics told PV Tech, “The immediate implication is that exports will reduce substantially once the duties are implemented, although a final decision is yet to be taken by the US. However, as the US Department of Commerce statistics show, we export only 2GW to 3GW of modules to the US annually, which is relatively marginal compared with the scale of production currently being consumed domestically.”

“Additionally, Indian players will be motivated and driven to set up facilities in the US themselves. Waaree’s facility is already operational in Texas, and other players that had initially announced plans to set up factories in the US may resume those plans with greater rigour.”

The investigation was initiated following petitions from the Alliance for American Solar Manufacturing and Trade, whose members include Hanwha Qcells USA, First Solar and Mission Solar Energy in August 2025.

“America’s solar manufacturing sector is poised for a historic resurgence, with domestic module capacity up more than 750% since 2022 and cell production expanding as well,” said Tim Brightbill, co-chair of Wiley’s International Trade Practice and lead counsel to the Alliance.

“But that progress is being harmed by dumped and subsidised imports from India, Indonesia and Laos that have denied American producers a level playing field. Today’s final determinations are an essential step toward enforcing our trade laws and restoring fair competition for US solar manufacturers and the workers they employ.”

DoC’s final determinations found that producers in India, Indonesia and Laos had sold crystalline silicon PV cells into the US market at less than fair value and had benefited from countervailable subsidies.

The investigations cover crystalline silicon PV cells, whether or not assembled into modules.

The duties are separate from broader US tariff measures and, if ultimately imposed, would apply in addition to other tariffs applicable to the imported products.

However, the DoC determinations do not by themselves result in permanent AD/CVD orders.

The US International Trade Commission (ITC) is conducting the parallel injury investigations. The Commission is scheduled to make its final determination on 14 October 2026 on whether imports from India, Indonesia and Laos materially injure, or threaten to materially injure, the US solar manufacturing industry.

An affirmative ITC determination would allow Commerce to issue the final AD/CVD duty orders, currently scheduled for 2 November 2026.

If the ITC determines that the US industry has not suffered material injury or is not threatened with material injury, the investigations will terminate and previously collected cash deposits would be refunded.

“The key US suppliers from abroad have already moved cell manufacturing to different locations, including Egypt, Ethiopia and Nigeria, while also looking to onshore module manufacturing capacity where they have not already done so. There are already a few petitions seeking to investigate some of these new manufacturing locations,” Hennessy said.

Furthermore, Hennessy added that with Section 232 [subscription required] looming, there will likely be less focus in the future on specific countries and individual AD/CVD cases and more on imports as a whole.

For Indian manufacturers in particular, the final 123.04% dumping margin and 126.09% subsidy rate represent a significant barrier to maintaining US market access if the ITC issues an affirmative injury determination.

The 14 October ITC vote will therefore be the next major milestone in determining whether the rates announced by Commerce become enforceable AD/CVD orders.

In February 2026, the US DoC had issued preliminary countervailing duties of up to 125.87% on crystalline silicon solar cells from India.

The preliminary determinations issued by the DoC in April set dumping margins of 123.04% for India, 35.15% for Indonesia and 22.46% for Laos. While the final determination left India’s margin unchanged, it significantly increased the rates for Indonesia and Laos to 94.36% and 65.43%, respectively.

The story has been updated to include comments from Premier Energies’ chief business officer Vinay Rustagi.

India’s renewable energy transition, from solar PV and energy storage to grid integration, will be a key topic of discussion at the Renewable Energy India (REI) Expo, co-located with the Energy Storage Summit India (ESS India), in Greater Noida on 22-24 October 2026. For the full agenda and booking details, click here.