The United States has completed the last legal step before imposing heavy duties on solar cells and modules shipped from India, Indonesia and Laos. The US International Trade Commission (USITC) issued a final affirmative injury determination in the case, known in the industry as Solar IV, finding that dumped and subsidised imports from the three countries harm American producers.
The finding follows final determinations by the Commerce Department in September. Commerce set anti-dumping margins of 123.04% for Indian producers, 94.36% for Indonesian producers and 65.43% for exporters in Laos. It added anti-subsidy (countervailing) rates of 126.09% for India, between 73.2% and 173.7% for Indonesian suppliers and between 82.03% and 153.67% for Laotian suppliers.
Who asked for protection
The petitions were filed by the Alliance for American Solar Manufacturing and Trade, whose lead members are First Solar, Hanwha Qcells USA and Mission Solar Energy. The same group of cases follows earlier US duty orders, known as Solar III, on cells from Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. According to pv magazine USA, shipments from those four countries fell from $12.2 billion in 2023 to $1.3 billion in 2025, and buyers have since shifted cell sourcing towards South Korea, the Philippines and several African countries.
How high the bill could go
Reports differ on the combined burden. pv magazine India puts the combined rates at up to 249% for India, 268% for Indonesia and 219% for Laos, while an earlier pv magazine USA report cited lower combined figures. The new duties also sit on top of existing US executive tariffs and Section 232 minimum import prices, which pv magazine USA reported at $0.22 per watt for cells and $0.38 per watt for modules.
Each round of solar duties has moved supply to a new set of countries rather than ending US reliance on imported cells.
What to watch
- Whether Commerce issues the anti-dumping and countervailing duty orders on schedule in early November, triggering cash deposits at the border.
- The USITC’s full public report, due by 23 November 2026.
- Whether Indian, Indonesian or Laotian exporters or their governments challenge the rates.
