The European Commission trumpeted an “amicable solution” to the trade dispute. It is believed to have agreed a minimum price of â¬0.56/W and an import cap of 7GW/year with some 90 Chinese manufacturers – which represent 60 per cent of the EU market. The deal means a punitive import levy averaging 47 per cent will no longer be imposed on 6 August.
EU trade commissioner Karel De Gucht said: “We are confident that this price undertaking will stabilise the European solar panel market and will remove the injury that the dumping practices have caused to the European industry.”
However, manufacturing body EU Prosun is taking legal action, saying the price floor is too low to make a difference. President Milan Nitzschke said the deal “endangers the very existence of the European solar industry”.
Manufacturers had expected a price closer to â¬0.80/W, based on the provisional findings of the Commission’s investigation.
The Solar Trade Association, which represents UK installers, said the minimum price would make some non-domestic projects uneconomic.
Chief executive Paul Barwell was relieved the Commission had backed down from its “appalling” original proposals. However, he told Utility Week the deal would fix prices for two-and-a-half years at a level 10-20 per cent higher than four months ago.
The UK government fought the original proposals and is “considering its position”, a spokeswoman from the business department said.