Trump unveils solar trade actions to boost US supply chain; industry split

US President Donald Trump set minimum prices on imports of crystalline-silicon solar panel materials and components, and imposed a new 15% import tariff on polysilicon, citing national security concerns and the need to revitalize domestic manufacturing.

The actions, detailed in an Aug. 6 proclamation, are based on recommendations from US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick following the conclusion of a Commerce Department probe. The investigation began in July 2025 under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962.

Polysilicon is an essential base material used to make semiconductors and most solar panels. The Commerce probe found that the US share of global polysilicon production plummeted to less than 2% in 2024 from 50% in 2005. Over the past decade, China has steadily increased its now-dominant share of global production capacity, accounting for 95% of global polysilicon production capacity in 2025, according to S&P Global Energy Horizons data.

Specifically, Trump set price floors for imports of the feedstock and various components, including $21 per kilogram for polysilicon, $100 per kg for ingots and wafers, 22 cents per Watt for cells and 38 cents per Watt for modules. The minimum prices, combined with the 15% duty, "will promote United States production of polysilicon derivatives by ensuring a commercially viable market for them," Trump said in the proclamation.

The White House also authorized the Secretary of Commerce to create an onshoring program under which manufacturers could be exempted from the new Section 232 tariffs to import production equipment, materials or panel components for US factories.

Solar companies split

Solar companies were split on whether the actions would help or hurt efforts to expand domestic manufacturing.

"America has made terrific progress rebuilding its solar manufacturing base, but imposing tariffs and prices floors on solar materials will create new challenges for American manufacturers and raise energy costs for families and businesses," Tim Pawlenty, CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association, said in an Aug. 6 news release. SEIA is the sector's primary trade group.

The Solar Energy Manufacturers for America (SEMA) Coalition was more supportive, committing to work with the Trump administration on implementation.

"We appreciate the administration's focus on rebuilding a secure, domestic solar supply chain," Mike Carr, executive director of the SEMA Coalition, said in an Aug. 7 news release. "The remedy must support continued US investments in critical solar component manufacturing to meet our demand for affordable electricity while supporting good American jobs."

Trump's decision drew praise from Hanwha Qcells, an affiliate of South Korea-based Hanwha Solutions Corp. with major solar panel and component factories in Georgia.

The White House action "balances the reality of where America's solar energy manufacturing is today while advancing our collective ambition to onshore the entire supply chain from polysilicon to finished panels in the US," Andy Park, global head of Hanwha Qcells, known as Qcells, said in an emailed statement. "This decision helps support the billions of dollars invested and the thousands of jobs created at factories around the country."

The decision "helps lay the groundwork for more investments, more jobs, and more innovation to come," Park added.

Qcells is on the SEMA Coalition's steering committee, along with Corning Inc. and its affiliate Hemlock Semiconductor LLC, which produces polysilicon in Michigan. A Qcells representative is also the chair of SEIA's board of directors.

"This is a win for advanced American manufacturing and investment in domestic energy supply chains," Dan Barcelo, CEO and chairman of Texas-based solar manufacturer T1 Energy Inc., said in an Aug. 7 news release. "For too long, America forgot how to build. Now, we're building energy again which is foundational to prosperity."

First Solar 'biggest winner'

Several analysts pointed to First Solar Inc., which makes thin-film panels using cadmium-telluride semiconductor materials in the US and globally, as a major beneficiary of the federal actions.

First Solar is "the biggest, long-awaited winner," analysts at BNP Paribas said in an Aug. 7 note, adding that the decision should extend the Arizona-based company's "competitive positioning and sales traction into the 2030s."

On the other hand, most solar developers, construction companies and suppliers of tracking systems and balance of system equipment are "negatively impacted," the analysts said.

As a result of the Section 232 decision, BNP analysts reduced their forecast for US utility-scale solar additions through 2030.

Jefferies analysts said in an Aug. 7 note that they expect a more modest impact on demand for First Solar panels, with panel prices unlikely to rise over 40 cents per W.

"Do not expect an immediate rush to procure [First Solar] panels in the near term either, but arguably the setup for [the company's international] facilities has improved," Jefferies analysts said.

First Solar was awaiting the outcome of the Commerce investigation before deciding the future of underutilized factories in Malaysia and Vietnam. First Solar also produces panels in India.

Those international facilities are the "quiet, unexpected winner" of the White House decision, Jefferies analysts said, calling the action "a milestone" of lobbying efforts by First Solar and NextEra Energy Inc., a large customer of the company.

First Solar's domestic manufacturing footprint spans operating factories in Alabama, Louisiana and Ohio, and a site expected to come online later this year in South Carolina.

First solar stock was up over 3% in afternoon trading on Aug. 7.