According to reporting by various renewable energy news websites, India’s Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) announced on March 29 that it will recommend the levying of anti-dumping duties on non-transparent fluoro backsheets imported from China for five years.

DGTR initiated an anti-dumping investigation on March 30 last year following a petition from Indian backsheet supplier Renewsys. According to Renewsys, Chinese backsheets that have been sold at extremely low prices in the domestic market are identical to domestically manufactured backsheets. Therefore, they ought to be regarded as “like articles” under the anti-dumping rules. DGTR’s investigation, which analyzed the 2017-2020 period, has reached the same conclusion. After spending a year studying this case and soliciting feedback from various stakeholders, the agency now contends that the imposition anti-dumping duties conforms to the country’s 1962 Customs Act and is necessary in order to compensate for the injuries suffered by domestic suppliers.

A fluoro backsheet protects cells and other inner components of a PV module from external stresses such as dust, moisture, and extreme temperatures. It also serves as an electrical insulation layer. In a duty table drawn up by DGTR for the Indian customs authority, non-transparent backsheets exported from China by Jolywood (Suzhou) Sunwatt Co. Ltd. and other suppliers are now listed as taxable plastic items under heading numbers 3920 and 3921. The recommended rate on Jolywood’s products is USD 762 per metric ton, whereas the recommended rate on other suppliers’ products is USD 908 per metric ton. Again, it should be pointed out that transparent backsheets are not targeted because they are deemed to be “substantially different” from non-transparent backsheets in terms of technical and commercial specifications.