Rumor: Duty on Korean polysilicon imports into China below 10%

On October 25, Taiwanese market researcher PVinsights mentioned the rumor that the future duties on polysilicon imports from South Korea into China would be set at a rate below 5%.

Now EnergyTrend has spread similar rumors that the duty rate would be lower than 5% for “the major polysilicon suppliers” and 5-10% for “other larger manufacturers” in South Korea.

So far, the duties on polysilicon imports from South Korea into China have been 2.4% for OCI, 2.8% for Hankook Silicon and 12.3% for other Korean companies; in fact, the only other Korean polysilicon producer that is still active is Hanwha Chemical.

On November 22, 2016, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce (Mofcom) announced that it had started a mid-term review of the duties on imports from South Korea. The review was requested by Chinese polysilicon producers, who accused the Korean importers of dumping margins of 33% to 37%. In contrast, Chinese makers of monocrystalline wafers are interested in continuing supply of low-cost, high-purity polysilicon from South Korea.

Mofcom will probably publish its decision around November 22, 2017, one year after starting the review.