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The U.S. will increase Section 301 tariffs on imports of wafers, polysilicon and some tungsten products from China, the Biden administration announced Wednesday (Supply Chain Dive). 
 
What’s going on: “Solar wafers and polysilicon imports, critical components for solar energy development, will now face a 50% tariff rate. Tungsten products, such as bars and sheets, will be subject to a 25% tariff rate. The hikes will take effect Jan. 1.”  

• The new increases join levy hikes on electric vehicles, lithium batteries, solar cells, aluminum products and semiconductors finalized by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative in September, four months after the agency completed a long-awaited, statutorily required four-year review of Section 301 tariffs. 

The background: The tariffs—named for Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974—were put into place in 2017 to address unfair trade practices by China.   
 
The impact: “It’s unlikely U.S. solar panel assemblers interact much with Chinese solar wafers, as much of the supply to the United States comes from Southeast Asian countries instead. Avoiding Chinese polysilicon may be harder—seven of the Top 10 global polysilicon producers are located within China” (Solar Power World). 
 
Exclusion process needed: The report issued by the USTR upon finalization of its four-year review of the Section 301 tariffs lacks a tariff-exclusion process, something long advocated by the NAM.  

What should be done: The incoming Trump administration “should implement an exclusion process that fairly accounts for the unintended consequences of tariffs on our industry’s ability to create jobs and reach the 95% of customers around the world,” NAM Vice President of International Policy Andrea Durkin said.