The gamble by a company here churning out large volumes of solar panels was starting to look risky.
U.S. solar , Its plan to be a launchpad for a solar manufacturing resurgence was already audacious in an industry so dominated by China, whose cheap products drove the closure of many American solar plants. Government investment championed by the White House was supposed to position domestic firms to compete, but a paralyzed Congress was refusing to write the check. But the wager in Dalton by Qcells North America may have paid off with an ambitious climate package now on a path to President Biden’s desk. The bill, negotiated in part by Sen. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.), would deliver billions of dollars in tax and other incentives to U.S. solar manufacturers, equipping them with government support on a scale of those China used to corner the market.
This is a historic climate bill, but it’s also one of if not the most significant industrial policy bills of this era,” said Harry Godfrey, who oversees domestic manufacturing policy for Advanced Energy Economy, a trade group that represents clean tech companies eager to ramp up U.S. production. The boost to the industry comes at a time of solar power reckoning for America. Bringing back domestic production is no longer a nostalgic aspiration. It is a national security issue. Solar panels produce some of the cheapest electricity, a significant asset at a time of skyrocketing energy prices and aggressive climate targets. China’s domination over the solar supply chain also poses an ever-growing threat to America’s energy independence and financial health
Source: This news is originally published by washingtonpost