SEMA Urges US Government to Boost Solar Manufacturing Amid Concerns Over Dependence on Chinese Supply Chains

The US Solar Manufacturing Association (SEMA) has called on the US government to act aggressively to support upstream solar manufacturing following the recent visit of US Secretary Yellen to Beijing, stating that the Treasury secretary returned from her visit without any commitments from China’s government on excess solar capacity. The falling price of solar modules, cells, and upstream components, including polysilicon, has been causing a “race to the bottom” with importers, leading to a dependence on China. SEMA also called for an update of the domestic content bonus credit established in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) to ensure it drives demand across the supply chain. The domestic content adder currently requires modules deployed in the US to have at least 40% “US-made” components, which will rise to 55% in 2026. However, the majority of a module’s cost comes from its upstream production stages, particularly cells, which are currently less common in US than module assembly plants. Critics argue that this reliance on Chinese polys raises concerns about forced labour and the potential for forced labour from other provinces.