China not dumping PV products in Europe - association
By Terry Wang
Shanghai. October 23. INTERFAX-CHINA - A member of the Chinese Renewable Energy Society (CRES) told Interfax on Oct. 23 that domestic companies are not dumping photovoltaic (PV) products in Europe despite the German PV industry's recent call for the European Union to launch an anti-dumping investigation into Chinese producers.
Although the prices of Chinese PV products are lower than their European counterparts, a CRES investigation found that Chinese PV producers are not selling products in Europe below production cost or domestic prices, Wu Dacheng, vice chairman of the CRES's Photovoltaic Committee, said on the sidelines of an industry forum in Shanghai.
"The quality of the exported PV products is basically OK, so it is not correct to say that Chinese producers are dumping products in Europe," Wu said.
Many European companies believe that Chinese PV producers are getting excessive government subsidies that have given them an unfair edge over their competitors, Wu said, adding that this belief is a misconception.
No Chinese PV producers receive direct subsidies from the government, Wu said. The government generally provides subsides for the construction of power plants, not for production plants.
Wu said that the government will organize domestic companies and associations to work with their European counterparts to solve any disputes.
"After all, China and Europe have a shared interest in the PV industry," Wu said. "A lot of Chinese companies import PV manufacturing equipment from Germany. And when China's PV power market matures, it will become a large market for European PV producers.