In reality, unlike in the Star Wars saga, the line between good and evil is not always clear and distinct. This is evident in the debate over antidumping duties and the unintended effects of the resulting market restrictions in Europe.
At first, the initiative of the EU Prosun association spearheaded by Frank Asbeck and his company SolarWorld against alleged dumping prices from China appeared welcome and worthy of support to most solar stakeholders. The idea was to instrumentalize the EU Commission to prevent the European PV market and companies based there from being crushed under the weight of government backed Chinese companies. In true Jedi fashion, the Europeans stood fast against the dark side and forced the imperial invaders to retreat or submit to European prices.
They skillfully parried further attacks in the form of evasion attempts by Asian competition. Commissioners were constantly presented with alleged irregularities and, in response, defensive measures were repeatedly strengthened and minimum prices raised. The rebels seemed to have successfully saved the PV universe from the overwhelming power of the empire – fade to credits …
But something seems out of place in this PV trade wars tale.
Unfortunately, this confrontation has left the market – and most European companies across the value chain – by the wayside. Solar installations bring a high level of regional value creation, even if non-European modules are used. But when affordable solar modules are lacking, there are no installations, no value creation, and no jobs. And since Europe is not the center of the galaxy, the solar starfleet has long since lifted off and flown to more lucrative regions.
So, did we really throw our support behind the right side when we joined the rebels? No one can seriously doubt that even Mr. Asbeck acted in his own interests when he and a handful of likeminded entrepreneurs submitted their complaint to the European Commission and got the ball rolling on the investigations and resulting measures. To date, the minimum import price has mainly ensured the survival of SolarWorld, and if it is allowed to remain in place will enable the Bonn-based company to expand its market share significantly in Europe and develop a dominant position as one of the few remaining cell and module manufacturers in Germany – the “Sonnenkönig” (“Sun King”) consolidates his empire.
Can it be good for a market when diversity dies, when prices are artificially inflated when in fact they could easily be 10 – 15% lower, as is evident in the price levels of adjacent free markets? Who benefits from a price level at which large PV systems can no longer be built economically and project expertise either moves out of the region or is lost? Since the introduction of the minimum import prices, the European market has already contracted significantly, since no coordinated measures have been adopted to counteract their effects. For some time, the German market has been developing at a rate below the government expansion target. “Commander – our relief effort was not successful, the planet has been destroyed!”
So now, under the banner of SAFE, the Solar Alliance for Europe, made up predominantly of German companies – let’s call them “friends of the Empire” – a movement is taking shape to stand against the threat of extinction of the regional PV market and take up the fight against continued restrictions. It is a well known fact that competition revitalizes markets. The intent is to create room for Asian companies to develop in Europe again, put a stop to the trend of rising prices, and stand in opposition to the looming monopoly of a company called “Solar World”. The organization held its first press conference on Wednesday, July 15 to formulate a finely woven argument against minimum prices and punitive tariffs, as well as to present policy makers with a list of demands. But this was only the beginning, it said, and announced that further actions would follow. May the force be with you!