We discussed this in our blog post two months ago but we’re seeing more signs from a wider variety of sources that the cost of solar is increasing and we want our customers to get the best deal they can when they decide to go solar so we’re sharing some updated information.
According to PV Magazine, the US market is seeing price increases as the result of supply chain disruptions from materials coming from China. The disruptions stem from a history of trade sanctions on Chinese manufacturers dumping products into the US market at a loss (but getting reimbursed for the losses by their government) and more recently as the result of concern about reports of forced labor in the solar supply chain originating in the Xinjiang region of China.
JinkoSolar has had ~100MW of product detained by the US Customs and Border Patrol because of concerns about Hoshine Silicon Industry Co. Ltd.’s reported use of forced labor.
“Price increases, supply chain disruptions, and a series of trade risks are threatening our ability to decarbonize the electric grid,” said SEIA president and CEO Abigail Ross Hopper in releasing the Q2 U.S. Solar Market Insight report by the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and Wood Mackenzie.
Puget Sound Solar is in touch with our supply chain and we’re doing our best to ensure their products do not come from Hoshine or the Xinjiang region of China. (We do not sell JinkoSolar.)
One potential local solution is getting the REC Silicon factory in Moses Lake back online and producing solar-grade silicon. Plans are in place to reopen in 2023 but China’s trade and human rights issues may accelerate the reopening.
In the meantime, if you’re interested in getting a free customized quote for solar, please give us a call at 206-706-1931 or fill out our contact form and tell us a little about your solar project.
If you contact us now, you may be able to get on the installation calendar this year so you can get the 26% Federal Tax Credit when you file your taxes in 2022.
