Why US solar manufacturers are still ‘playing catch-up’ to China after years of tariffs

When former President Barack Obama first imposed tariffs on solar cells and panels imported from China in 2012, he vowed to "level the playing field" for American workers and businesses to counter unfair trade practices. Twelve years later, successive tariffs have done little to dent China's dominance in the solar supply chain. The country nearly doubled its solar photovoltaic manufacturing capabilities in 2023 alone, according to the IEA, and commissioned as much capacity as the entire world did in 2022. As the US prepares to lift a two-year exemption on tariffs for solar imports from Southeast Asian countries on Thursday,…