The Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) has recommended imposition of anti-dumping duty on imports of textured tempered glass (solar glass) from China and Vietnam.
In its provisional findings, the DGTR has recommended the imposition of anti-dumping duties equivalent to the lesser of the dumping margin or the injury margin, with a view to offsetting the injury to the Indian domestic industry and restoring balance in the market.
As part of the current process, DGTR allows interested parties 30 days to submit comments on these preliminary findings, after which an oral hearing will be held.
The DGTR's investigation revealed positive dumping margins for textured tempered glass from China and Vietnam, which accounted for 98 per cent of India's total imports. It found that imports from China alone have increased significantly from 29,324 metric tonnes in 2020-21 to 659,732 metric tonnes during the survey period, while imports from Vietnam have also increased significantly.
The main product investigated was ‘textured reinforced (toughened) glass’, a special glass with a light transmission of at least 90.5 per cent and a thickness of up to 4.2 mm. Known for its low iron content and high light transmission, this glass is indispensable for solar photovoltaic modules and other solar applications.
Throughout the period of injury, DGTR found that the CIF prices of these imports were consistently lower than the domestic selling prices and the cost of goods sold by the Indian producers. This price suppression had a long-lasting effect, preventing domestic producers from adjusting their prices in line with rising production costs and causing substantial losses to the domestic industry.
India has conducted several anti-dumping investigations and imposed anti-dumping duties on Chinese PV solar glass.
On 17 October 2024, Indian renewable energy and glass manufacturing company borosil renewables urged the Indian government to impose anti-dumping duties on Chinese solar glass, claiming that Chinese manufacturers are exporting the product to India at prices ‘well below’ the cost of production, which puts domestic glass manufacturers at a disadvantage. The company claims that Chinese manufacturers are exporting the product to India at prices ‘well below’ production costs, putting its domestic glass manufacturers at a disadvantage.
Prior to this, the Indian Finance Ministry had imposed anti-dumping duty on Chinese solar glass for a period of five years with effect from 18 August 2017.2022 In May 2022, the Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) had recommended that the anti-dumping duty on imports of texturised toughened photovoltaic glass from China be extended by a further two years.The DGTR's investigations had found that Chinese producers and exporters of solar glass had significant overcapacities, had a high propensity to export and continued to export to India at prices below normal value, resulting in continued dumping.
The imposition of anti-dumping duties on Chinese photovoltaic solar glass enterprises exported to the Indian market has had a certain impact, increasing the cost of sales and competitive pressure on Chinese enterprises in the Indian market. At the same time, this also reflects India's trade protectionist tendency in the photovoltaic industry.
Source : https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/FayfseSwZy1_5W5mSmDoeA
