SolarBridge recently received a $1.5 million grant from the Texas Emerging Technology Fund to develop technology for residential and small commercial solar installations. Meanwhile, the Texas Public Utility Commission is considering a plan that would provide subsidies to solar generators of electricity. And these are on top of the hundreds or millions of dollars of solar subsidies available from the federal government. In fact, solar is already the most subsidized energy source at around $24 per megawatt-hour.
Now comes a ruling from the office of US Customs and Border Protection that imported solar panels from China containing a basic electronic device for safety and energy efficiency will be treated as electric generators, and thus subject to a duty of 2.5 percent.
So, on the one hand, we are subsidizing solar equipment to make it cheaper. On the other, we are taxing it to make it more expensive. What gives?
A big part of this is probably good ‘ol American protectionism. We like solar panels… provided they are made here by American workers.
But whatever the causes, the one thing these conflicting government actions have in common is that they cost money. The subsidies for solar make electricity more expensive and increases taxes, as do the tariffs on solar panels. And the money is used to shore up a company, “create” jobs, or boost some local economy. Everybody gets something, except consumers and taxpayers.
– Bill Peacock