The Department of Commerce has done that issued the provisional countervailing duty (CVD) amounts in an investigation into imports of solar cells from India, Indonesia and Laos. India has an overall subsidy rate of 125.87%, Indonesia’s overall subsidy rate is 104.38% and Laos received a subsidy rate of 80.67%.
CVDs are placed on imports to eliminate subsidies to producers in and through the exporting country. In this case, the trade decided that solar panel manufacturers in all three countries were incentivized by their own markets to make solar panels for the US market. These provisional duties will be enforced by customs and cash deposits will be collected on imported cells, panel mounted or otherwise.
Provisional subsidy rates India
| Exporter/producer | CVD rate |
| Mundra Solar (Adani) | 125.87% |
| Everyone else | 125.87% |
Provisional subsidy rates for Indonesia
| Exporter/producer | CVD rate |
| Blue sky solar energy | 143.3% |
| PT REC Solar Indonesia (NE Solar) | 85.99% |
| Everyone else | 104.38% |
*PT REC Solar Indonesia has no relationship with REC Group, active in Singapore.
Provisional subsidy rates of Laos
| Exporter/producer | CVD rate |
| Solar Space, Vietnam Sunergy (VSUN) | 80.67% |
| Everyone else | 80.67% |
The Alliance for American Solar Energy Manufacturing and Tradea group of domestic solar energy manufacturers, petitioned the government for an anti-dumping/CVD investigation in July 2025, alleging that solar panel makers had shifted their operations to India, Indonesia and Laos to avoid tariffs on imports from Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) determined in August that U.S. industry had been materially harmed by imports from the three countries, and Commerce conducted its own investigation into the matter. With today’s preliminary CVD disclosure, the industry is awaiting the preliminary AD amounts, which are expected to be announced in April.
“Today’s vote is an important step toward restoring fair competition to the U.S. solar market,” said Tim Brightbill, co-chair of Wiley Rein’s International Trade Practice and lead counsel for the Alliance. “American manufacturers are investing billions of dollars to rebuild domestic capacity and create good-paying jobs. These investments cannot succeed if unfairly traded imports are allowed to distort the market.”
The trade reviewed Indian solar panel import data from April 1, 2024 through March 31, 2025 (India’s most recent fiscal year) and reviewed calendar year 2024 data for Indonesia and Laos, ultimately finding that solar panel exporters in all three countries were subsidized.
The alliance, which includes First Solar, Mission Solar, Qcells and Talon PV, also filed a “critical circumstances” allegation with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick last month. The document states that imports from India, Indonesia and Laos have surged, activity that “strongly suggests that these imports are being rushed to the United States in an effort to avoid the imposition of anti-dumping and countervailing duties.” The Alliance requested an expedited decision on critical circumstances, which would retroactively impose duties on imports imported up to 90 days before the tariffs were announced.
The trade released details in this preliminary CVD decision that it found no critical conditions for Laos as imports did not increase by more than 15%. The trade also noted no increase in imports from India as a whole, but specifically from Mundra Solar. As for Indonesia, the Trade noted that imports from PT REC Solar Indonesia did not increase significantly, but imports from Blue Sky and “all others” did. A positive preliminary decision on critical conditions has been taken for Indonesia, with the exception of PT REC Solar Indonesia, and for Indian imports of Mundra Solar.
Once the preliminary AD rates are announced around April 21, the final AD/CVD rates are expected to be released on September 3, 2026. Only once the ITC has made a final determination (scheduled for October 19) will Customs begin collecting the final tariff amounts.
All three countries are under various tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump, including the emergency Sec. 122 rates announced last weekend. India recently reached an agreement with the United States on an overall tariff of 18%.
Last week, the United States and Indonesia signed an agreement general trade agreement. In exchange for importing $15 billion in U.S. energy (coal, oil and gas), $4.5 billion in U.S. agricultural products, and $13.5 billion in U.S. aircraft equipment, the United States will impose a 19% tariff on all Indonesian goods.
See where the United States imported solar panels from in 2025. We just posted news with graphs and charts.
