ESMC and Uyghur groups urge Europe to shift burden of proof on Xinjiang forced labor in solar supply chain.

The European Solar Industry Council (ESMC) and Uyghur groups have called for a shift in the burden of proof to address alleged Xinjiang forced labour in Europe’s solar supply chain. The discussion highlighted the importance of both government legislation and industry players in addressing the situation for the solar PV industry, which is one of several industries exposed to alleged exploitation of the UYghur population. The most prominent example of this is the US’ Uyghanur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA), which requires suppliers shipping into the US to prove that their supply chains are completely free from exposure to forced labour rather than relying on proof from the importing governing body. The Solar industry has been lobbying for forced labour regulations, focusing on the moral imperative of Europe refusing to tolerate or financially enable forced labour and the ‘unfair’ solar market landscape. The UFLPA assumes that any product with components from Xinjiang is exposed to the forced labour, until proven otherwise. The upstream portions of the solar supply Chain is the most exposed to forced labor, with quartz mining, metallurgical silicon (MGS) production and polysilicon production being particularly affected by this.