Trade policy uncertainty and soaring commodities costs are impacting solar development
US solar faces policy and cost headwinds
Recent government move to pause tariffs on imports from Southeast Asia not enough to remove uncertainty hampering the sector, analysts say
The US commercial solar power sector faces significant headwinds in the near term as trade policy uncertainty and soaring costs threaten the viability of some projects, according to speakers at consultancy Wood Mackenzie’s Solar & Energy Storage Summit in San Diego, California. US president Joe Biden paused the imposition of new tariffs on solar panels and modules from Southeast Asia for up to two years in early June to help ease a shortage of components amid a US Department of Commerce (DOC) probe into attempts by Chinese manufacturers to sidestep duties. Biden also authorised use of the Defense Production Act (DPA) to accelerate domestic manufacture of clean energy technologies, includ
Also in this section
22 July 2025
Sinopec hosts launch of global sharing platform as Beijing looks to draw on international investors and expertise
22 July 2025
Africa’s most populous nation puts cap-and-trade and voluntary markets at the centre of its emerging strategy to achieve net zero by 2060
17 July 2025
Oil and gas companies will face penalties if they fail to reach the EU’s binding CO₂ injection targets for 2030, but they could also risk building underused and unprofitable CCS infrastructure
9 July 2025
Latin American country plans a cap-and-trade system and supports the scale-up of CCS as it prepares to host COP30
