[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 140 (Thursday, July 24, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34838-34840]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2025-13954]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-570-010, C-570-011]
Crystalline Silicon Photovoltaic Products, Whether or Not
Assembled Into Modules, From the People's Republic of China: Final
Results of Changed Circumstances Reviews, and Revocation of the
Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Orders, in Part
AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) is issuing the
final results of changed circumstances review (CCR) of the antidumping
duty (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) orders on crystalline silicon
photovoltaic products, whether or not assembled into modules (solar
products), from the People's Republic of China (China) to revoke the
order, in part, with respect to certain small, low-wattage, off-grid
crystalline silicon photovoltaic (CSPV) cells.
DATES: Applicable July 24, 2025.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tyler O'Daniel, Office of Policy
Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, U.S.
Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC
20230; telephone: (202) 482-6030.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On February 18, 2015, Commerce published the AD and CVD orders on
solar products from China.\1\ On August 28, 2024, Lutron, a domestic
producer, importer and exporter of subject merchandise, requested that
Commerce conduct changed circumstances reviews (CCRs) to find that it
is appropriate to revoke the Orders, in part, with respect to certain
small, low-wattage, off-grid CSPV cells, pursuant to section 751(b)(1)
of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act), and 19 CFR
351.216(b).\2\ Lutron's CCR request included a letter from the American
Alliance for Solar Manufacturing (the Alliance) (a coalition of
domestic producers of solar cells), which stated that the Alliance did
not oppose the partial revocation of the Orders proposed by Lutron.\3\
On October 21, 2024, we published the notice of initiation of the
requested CCRs.\4\ In the Initiation Notice, we invited interested
parties to provide comments and/or factual information regarding these
CCRs, including comments on industry support and the proposed partial
revocation language.\5\ We received no comments or factual information.
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\1\ See Certain Crystalline Silicon Photovoltaic Products from
the People's Republic of China: Antidumping Duty Order; and Amended
Final Affirmative Countervailing Duty Determination and
Countervailing Duty Order, 80 FR 8592 (February 18, 2015) (Orders).
\2\ See Lutron's Letter, ``Lutron Electronics Co., Inc.'s
Request for Changed Circumstances Reviews and Request to Combine
Initiation and Preliminary Results,'' dated August 28, 2024 (CCR
Request).
\3\ Id. at Exhibit 2 and 3.
\4\ See Crystalline Silicon Photovoltaic Products, Whether or
Not Assembled into Modules, from the People's Republic of China:
Notice of Initiation of Changed Circumstances Reviews, and
Consideration of Revocation of the Antidumping and Countervailing
Duty Orders, in Part, 89 FR 84120 (October 21, 2024) (Initiation
Notice).
\5\ Id., 89 FR at 84121.
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On April 28, 2025, Commerce preliminarily found that producers
accounting for substantially all of the domestic production of the
products to which the Orders pertain lack interest in the relief
provided by the Orders with respect to CSPV cells, and announced its
intention to revoke, in part, the Orders with respect to these
products.\6\ Commerce provided interested parties with the opportunity
to comment and request a public hearing regarding the Preliminary
Results. Commerce did not receive any comments or a request for a
hearing from interested parties. As a result, the Preliminary Results
are hereby adopted as the final results of this CCR and no decision
memoranda accompany this notice.
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\6\ See Crystalline Silicon Photovoltaic Products, Whether or
Not Assembled Into Modules, From the People's Republic of China:
Preliminary Results of Changed Circumstances Reviews, and Intent To
Revoke the Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Orders, in Part, 90
FR 17565 (April 28, 2025) (Preliminary Results).
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Final Results of Changed Circumstances Reviews and Revocation of the
Orders, in Part
In light of Lutron's request, and domestic interested parties' lack
of interest in maintaining the Orders with respect to the products
under consideration, Commerce continues to find, pursuant to sections
751(d)(1) and 782(h)(2) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.222(g), that changed
circumstances exist that warrant revocation of the Orders, in part. No
interested party opposed this partial revocation. Moreover, no parties
provided other information or evidence that calls into question the
partial revocation described in the Preliminary Results.
Specifically, because producers accounting for substantially all
the production of the domestic like product to which the Orders pertain
have not expressed interest in maintaining the relief provided by the
Orders with respect to CSPV cells, as described below, Commerce is
revoking the Orders, in part, with respect to CSPV cells with the
following physical characteristics:
Also excluded from the scope of these Orders are off-grid CSPV
panels in rigid form, with or without a glass cover, permanently
attached to an aluminum extrusion that is an integral component of
an automation device that controls natural light, whether or not
assembled into a fully completed automation device that controls
natural light, with the following characteristics:
1. A total power output of 20 watts or less per panel;
2. A maximum surface area of 1,000 cm2 per panel;
3. Does not include a built-in inverter for powering third party
devices.\7\
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\7\ See CCR Request at 3.
The scope description below includes this new exclusion.
Scope of the Orders
The merchandise covered by these Orders is modules, laminates and/
or panels consisting of crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells, whether
or not partially or fully assembled into other products, including
building integrated materials. For purposes of these Orders, subject
merchandise includes modules, laminates and/or panels assembled in
China consisting of crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells produced in
a customs territory other than China.
Subject merchandise includes modules, laminates and/or panels
assembled in China consisting of
[[Page 34839]]
crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells of thickness equal to or greater
than 20 micrometers, having a p/n junction formed by any means, whether
or not the cell has undergone other processing, including, but not
limited to, cleaning, etching, coating, and/or addition of materials
(including, but not limited to, metallization and conductor patterns)
to collect and forward the electricity that is generated by the cell.
Excluded from the scope of the Orders are thin film photovoltaic
products produced from amorphous silicon (a-Si), cadmium telluride
(CdTe), or copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS).
Also excluded from the scope of these Orders are modules, laminates
and/or panels assembled in China, consisting of crystalline silicon
photovoltaic cells, not exceeding 10,000 mm2 in surface area, that are
permanently integrated into a consumer good whose function is other
than power generation and that consumes the electricity generated by
the integrated crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells. Where more than
one module, laminate and/or panel is permanently integrated into a
consumer good, the surface area for purposes of this exclusion shall be
the total combined surface area of all modules, laminates and/or panels
that are integrated into the consumer good.
Further, also excluded from the scope of these Orders are any
products covered by the existing antidumping and countervailing duty
orders on crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells, whether or not
assembled into modules, laminates and/or panels, from China.\8\
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\8\ See Crystalline Silicon Photovoltaic Cells, Whether or Not
Assembled Into Modules, from the People's Republic of China: Amended
Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value, and
Antidumping Duty Order, 77 FR 73018 (December 7, 2012); see also
Crystalline Silicon Photovoltaic Cells, Whether or Not Assembled
Into Modules, from the People's Republic of China: Countervailing
Duty Order, 77 FR 73017 (December 7, 2012).
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Additionally, excluded from the scope of these Orders are solar
panels that are: (1) less than 300,000 mm2 in surface area; (2) less
than 27.1 watts in power; (3) coated across their entire surface with a
polyurethane doming resin; and (4) joined to a battery charging and
maintaining unit (which is an acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) box
that incorporates a light emitting diode (LED)) by coated wires that
include a connector to permit the incorporation of an extension cable.
The battery charging and maintaining unit utilizes high-frequency
triangular pulse waveforms designed to maintain and extend the life of
batteries through the reduction of lead sulfate crystals. The above-
described battery charging and maintaining unit is currently available
under the registered trademark ``SolarPulse.''
Also excluded from the scope of these Orders are off-grid
crystalline silicon photovoltaic panels without a glass cover with the
following characteristics: (1) total power output of 500 watts or less
per panel; (2) maximum surface area of 8,000 cm2 per panel; (3) unit
does not include a built-in inverter; (4) unit has visible parallel
grid collector metallic wire lines every 2-40 millimeters across each
solar panel (depending on model); (5) solar cells are encased in
laminated frosted PET material without stitching; (6) the panel is
encased in polyester fabric with visible stitching which includes a
Velcro-type storage pocket and unit closure, or encased within a
Neoprene clamshell (depending on model); and (7) includes LED
indicator.
Additionally excluded from the scope of these Orders are off-grid
small portable crystalline silicon photovoltaic panels, with or without
a glass cover, with the following characteristics: (1) a total power
output of 200 watts or less per panel; (2) a maximum surface area of
16,000 cm2 per panel; (3) no built-in inverter; (4) an integrated
handle or a handle attached to the package for ease of carry; (5) one
or more integrated kickstands for easy installation or angle
adjustment; and (6) a wire of not less than 3 meters either permanently
connected or attached to the package that terminates in an 8mm diameter
male barrel connector.
Also excluded from the scope of these Orders are off-grid CSPV
panels in rigid form, with or without a glass cover, permanently
attached to an aluminum extrusion that is an integral component of an
automation device that controls natural light, whether or not assembled
into a fully completed automation device that controls natural light,
with the following characteristics: (1) A total power output of 20
watts or less per panel; (2) A maximum surface area of 1,000 cm2 per
panel; (3) Does not include a built-in inverter for powering third
party devices.
Merchandise covered by these Orders is currently classified in the
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) under
subheadings 8501.61.0000, 8507.20.8030, 8507.20.8040, 8507.20.8060,
8507.20.8090, 8541.40.6015, 8541.40.6020, 8541.40.6030, 8541.40.6035
and 8501.31.8000. These HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience
and customs purposes; the written description of the scope of these
Orders is dispositive.\9\
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\9\ See Orders.
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Application of the Final Results of the CCRs
Lutron requested that Commerce apply the final results of these
reviews to ``all unliquidated entries of the merchandise covered by the
revocation that are not covered by the final results of an
administrative review or automatic liquidation instruction.'' \10\
Section 751(d)(3) of the Act provides that ``{a{time} determination
under this section to revoke an order . . . shall apply with respect to
unliquidated entries of the subject merchandise which are entered, or
withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the date
determined by the administering authority.'' Commerce's general
practice is to instruct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to
liquidate without regard to antidumping and countervailing duties, and
to refund any estimated antidumping and countervailing duties on, all
unliquidated entries of the merchandise covered by a revocation that
are not covered by the final results of an administrative review or
automatic liquidation.\11\
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\10\ See CCR Request at 13.
\11\ See, e.g., Certain Pasta from Italy: Final Results of
Countervailing Duty Changed Circumstances Review and Revocation, In
Part, 76 FR 27634 (May 12, 2011); Stainless Steel Bar from the
United Kingdom: Notice of Final Results of Changed Circumstances
Review and Revocation of Order, in Part, 72 FR 65706 (November 23,
2007); Notice of Final Results of Antidumping Duty Changed
Circumstances Review and Revocation of Order In Part: Certain
Corrosion-Resistant Carbon Steel Flat Products from Germany, 71 FR
66163 (November 13, 2006); Notice of Final Results of Antidumping
Duty Changed Circumstances Reviews and Revocation of Orders in Part:
Certain Corrosion-Resistant Carbon Steel Flat Products from Canada
and Germany, 71 FR 14498 (March 22, 2006); and Notice of Final
Results of Antidumping Duty Changed Circumstances Review, and
Determination to Revoke Order in Part: Certain Cased Pencils from
the People's Republic of China, 68 FR 62428 (November 4, 2003).
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In the Preliminary Results, we stated our intent that ``the partial
revocation will be retroactively applied to unliquidated entries of
merchandise subject to the CCR that were entered or withdrawn from
warehouse, for consumption, on or after the day following the last day
of the period covered by the most recently completed administrative
reviews of the Orders, and which are not covered by automatic
liquidation,'' and invited comments.\12\ We received no comments on the
effective date of the partial revocation. Therefore, Commerce is
applying the partial revocation to unliquidated
[[Page 34840]]
entries of merchandise subject to the CCRs that were entered, or
withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption, on or after December 1, 2022
for the AD Order and January 1, 2022 for the CVD Order.
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\12\ See Preliminary Results.
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Instructions to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)
Because we determine that there are changed circumstances that
warrant the revocation of the Orders, in part, we will instruct CBP to
liquidate without regard to antidumping and countervailing duties, and
to refund any estimated antidumping and countervailing duties on, all
unliquidated entries of the merchandise covered by this partial
revocation on or after December 1, 2022 for the AD Order and January 1,
2022 for the CVD Order.
Commerce intends to issue instructions to CBP no earlier than 35
days after the date of publication of these final results of CCRs in
the Federal Register. If a timely summons is filed at the U.S. Court of
International Trade, the instructions will direct CBP not to liquidate
relevant entries until the time for parties to file a request for a
statutory injunction has expired (i.e., within 90 days of publication).
Administrative Protective Order
This notice serves as a final reminder to parties subject to an
administrative protective order (APO) of their responsibility
concerning the disposition of proprietary information disclosed under
an APO in accordance with 19 CFR 351.305(a)(3). Timely written
notification of the return/destruction of APO materials or conversion
to a judicial protective order is hereby requested. Failure to comply
with the regulations and terms of an APO is a sanctionable violation.
Notification to Interested Parties
We are issuing and publishing the final results of the CCR in
accordance with sections 751(b) and 777(i) of the Act, and 19 CFR
351.216, 19 CFR 351.221(c)(3), and 19 CFR 351.222(g).
Dated: July 18, 2025.
Christopher Abbott,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy and Negotiations, performing the
non-exclusive functions and duties of the Assistant Secretary for
Enforcement and Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2025-13954 Filed 7-23-25; 8:45 am]
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