Taiwan’s solar industry this year might see production value continue to grow from last year, with a ruling by the US following an anti-dumping probe favoring the nation’s solar makers, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday.

In the first three quarters, output of the solar industry fell 0.1 percent to NT$119.2 billion (US$3.61 billion) from a year earlier, mainly dragged down by the impact of another anti-dumping ruling by the US in January, the ministry said.

About 90 percent of Taiwan’s solar cell products were for export, with the US being the third-largest destination, the ministry said.

The US Department of Commerce in January ruled that Taiwanese solar makers would have to pay an average anti-dumping duty of 19.5 percent, while Chinese firms faced average anti-dumping tariffs of 17.5 percent.
The higher tariffs affected exports of Taiwan’s solar products to the US in the first half due to fierce price competition with Chinese firms, the ministry said.

“The price competition and anti-dumping duties placed great pressure on Taiwan’s solar makers,” an unnamed Department of Statistics official said by telephone.

The production value of Taiwan’s solar products plunged 12.1 percent to NT$74.2 billion in the first half compared with the same period last year, the ministry said.

However, the nation’s solar manufacturers benefited from a ruling issued in July, in which the US government raised the anti-dumping tariffs on Chinese solar makers to an average of 30.61 percent, while duties on Taiwanese products did not change, the ministry said.

The July ruling gave local solar makers a price advantage in the US from the third quarter on, it said.

In addition, growing solar-power demand in Japan, China and ASEAN boosted the industry’s output last quarter, the ministry said.

As a result, output swung from an annual decline to annual growth last quarter, with production value jumping 28.9 percent year-on-year to NT$45 billion, the ministry said.

“The US’ rulings played a key role in Taiwan’s solar industry this year,” the official said.

Citing a ministry survey of local manufacturers, the official said that many manufacturers held a positive outlook for this quarter.

The ministry forecast that the industry’s production value this year might continue moving higher, following an annual growth of 36.1 percent to NT$156.1 billion last year.

On Nov. 10, Inventec Corp , which owns two solar product subsidiaries, Inventec Solar Energy Corp (英穩達) and Inventec Energy Corp (英懋達), told investors that since last quarter, it had seen an easing of the effects of the initial ruling.

“Rising demand from emerging markets has offset the impact of the US’ ruling,” Inventec Solar Energy chief executive officer Harry Hsieh (謝瑞海) said at the time.

Combined sales of Inventec Solar Energy and Inventec Energy could surge 40 percent next year from this year’s estimated range of NT$8 billion to NT$10 billion, Hsieh said.