India Starts Anti-Dumping Probe on Aluminum Solar Frames Imported from China

India’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry, months after it put an end to the anti-dumping investigation into solar cells from China, Thailand and Vietnam in December 2022 seems set to start a fresh investigation. This time on the import of aluminium frames for solar modules.

The anti-dumping investigation will look into aluminum frames for solar modules brought in from China. The decision follows a petition by Vishakha Materials alleging that the aluminium solar frames imported from China are at dumped prices in large quantities. This, it states, is leading to material harm to Indian industry. This, has resulted in an increase in dumped imports, while undercutting the price and affecting capacity utilization as also return on investment. The DGTR, an entity of the Ministry of Commerce, taking note of the allegations, will initiate a probe looking into the extent and affects of the dumping and introduce anti-dumping duty to address the hit caused to the Indian industry.

The period that will be covered for investigation will be from April 2022 to March 2023. The injury duration will be April 2019 to March 2022.

Anti-dumping investigations play a crucial role to find out if cheap imports are having an adverse impact on the domestic industry. Thus, the anti-dumping duty will help ensure that fair trading practices are established and the there is a level-playing field for domestic manufacturers and foreign manufacturers, while also enabling domestic producers to rake in profit margins.

It may be recalled that in April 2022, a basic customs duty of 40% on solar modules and 25% on solar cells to steer the domestic industry into a sustainable model was imposed. This led to a sharp fall in imports. However, with a relaxation in ALMM requirements for projects, caused due to a domestic shortage and price rise, sufficient space was created yet again for imports to come in.