According to a notice published in the Federal Register on April 17, 2020, the U.S. Trade Representative will withdraw its exclusion of two-sided solar panel imports from the Section 201 tariffs established in 2018 following a review of the exclusion.[1] The two-sided solar panel exemption will be lifted as early as May 18, 2020 and the tariffs will end in 2022. Two-sided solar modules, a newer technology not widely manufactured in the U.S., are projected to grow in popularity due to power-generation advantages and relative cost-competitiveness, but a big part of their price advantage over one-sided panels is the tariff exemption.

In December 2019, when the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) first reviewed the effectiveness of the 2018 tariffs, several U.S. solar panel manufacturers argued for applying the tariffs to two-sided solar modules. Other members of the solar industry like the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and solar developers oppose the Trade Representative’s decision and are considering opportunities for a legal challenge.[2] [3] According to SEIA and other solar analysts, China's manufacturing and production, and the global solar module market, are starting to recover after the worldwide response to COVID-19. For developers, regaining supply of solar modules is critical for projects that have not already purchased and stocked up on panels. For solar manufacturers, though, the 2018 tariffs have spurred growth; five module manufacturing utilities have opened in the U.S. since 2018.

[1] https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/04/17/2020-08189/determination-on-the-exclusion-of-bifacial-solar-panels-from-the-safeguard-measure-on-solar-products

[2] https://www.seia.org/news/seia-statement-ustr-calling-remove-tariff-exclusions-bifacial-solar-modules

[3] https://www.seia.org/initiatives/international-trade