US sets preliminary new duties on solar imports from Southeast Asia

(Reuters) – The U.S. Commerce Department on Tuesday announced anti-subsidy countervailing duties on solar cells imported by companies from Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia and Thailand.

According to a preliminary decision posted on Commerce’s web site, the agency calculated tariff rates of between 0.14% and 3293.61%, depending on the company, on solar cells from the four Southeast Asian nations. A final decision will be made next year.

The announcement is the first of two preliminary decisions Commerce will make this year in a trade case brought by Korea’s Hanwha Qcells, Arizona-based First Solar (NASDAQ:) and several smaller companies seeking to protect billions of dollars in investments in U.S. solar manufacturing.