With solar industry in crisis, Europe in a bind over imports from China
The Hindu
Europe's green energy transition is hindered by cheap Chinese solar panel imports, causing a crisis for local manufacturers.
Europe’s green energy transition is stuck between a rock and a hard place.
A flood of cheap Chinese solar panel imports is driving record solar energy installations. But those same imports are crushing Europe’s few local solar manufacturers.
Governments and industry are split over how to respond.
Europe just had a bumper year for green energy. European Union countries installed record levels of solar capacity, 40% more than in 2022.
The vast majority of those panels and parts came from China — in some cases, 95%, International Energy Agency data show.
Yet, the green energy boom hasn’t helped Europe’s few local solar panel manufacturers, which have hit a crisis point, crushed by cheaper imports and oversupply. Announcements of production closures are piling up, and the sector has warned half of its capacity could shut within weeks unless governments step in.
Policymakers are scrambling to respond, but are split over how to do so.