China Mulls Protecting Solar Tech Dominance With Export Ban

Workers produce a batch of photovoltaic cells on Jan. 6 at a solar manufacturer in Dongying, East China’s Shandong province. The cells were set to be exported to India. Photo: VCG

(Bloomberg) — China is considering an export ban that would help the nation maintain its substantial dominance in solar manufacturing just as other countries are trying to strengthen their industries.

China’s Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Science and Technology are seeking public comment on adding some manufacturing methods key to producing advanced solar wafers to its list of technologies it prohibits exporting. Wafers are ultra-thin silicon squares that are pieced together into solar panels, and China accounts for 97% of global output.