The Directorate General of Commerce, Industry and Trade (DGTR) has proposed that India impose anti-dumping duties on coated backsheets originating in or imported from China for a period of five years starting March 29, 2022.
Indian module manufacturer RenewSys India has proposed to DGTR that anti-dumping duties should be imposed on coated backsheets imported from China. After that, DGTR launched an anti-dumping investigation.
According to RenewSys, the coated backsheets in China are identical to those made in India. Dumped imported backsheets do not differ in technical specifications, quality, functionality or end use.
In March 2021, DGTR launched a detailed investigation into coated backsheets imported from China and published its findings and recommendations. The survey period is from October 1, 2019 to September 30, 2020.
The DGTR also conducted an injury analysis to understand the impact of dumping on the domestic industry. The various periods covered in the analysis are April 2017 to March 2018, April 2018 to March 2019, April 2019 to March 2020 and the actual survey period.
A coated backsheet is a polymer composition material used in the manufacture of solar photovoltaic modules, which protects the modules from dirt, dust, moisture and decay.
In its investigation, DGTR found that coated backsheets had been exported to India at below normal value, which had resulted in dumping, and dumping was significant. During the investigation period, China dumped 331 metric tons of coated backsheets annually.
The DGTR noted that the absolute value of imports of coated backsheets from China increased throughout the damage investigation period. The CIF prices of these imports are well below the unaffected prices of the domestic industry, suggesting that prices are severely undervalued by 20 percent to 30 percent .
Imported coated backsheets are priced below cost of sales, which has had a price-suppressing effect on the Indian industry. During the investigation period, the domestic industry suffered losses, even EBIT and return on capital were negative, and the cash profit of the domestic industry also fell sharply.
The DGTR concluded that the damage to the domestic industry was not due to any other known factor. Therefore, the dumped product imported from the target country caused substantial damage to the domestic industry.
Its information on the record indicates that the impact of not imposing anti-dumping duties on consumers or downstream industries is minimal. Therefore, the imposition of anti-dumping duties is not contrary to the public interest.
The DGTR concluded that, under the Anti-dumping Rules, India must impose anti-dumping duties to counteract dumping and the resulting adverse effects after an investigation into dumping, injury and causation.
Under the lower tax rate rules, the DGTR proposes to impose anti-dumping duties equal to the lower of the dumping margin and the impact margin, thereby eliminating the impact on the domestic industry, which is affected by 20 percent .
The DGTR proposes to impose anti-dumping duties of 762/metric ton on coated backsheets originating from producers such as China or Jolywood, and 908/metric ton on all other producers.
According to the procedure, the DGTR, which is the designated agency of the Ministry of Commerce, will recommend the imposition of provisional anti-dumping duties or final anti-dumping duties. The Treasury Department's tax office will then take action on recommendations to collect or dispose of such taxes within three months.
The DGTR also recommended that anti-dumping duties be imposed on certain flat-rolled aluminium products imported from China to offset the damage caused by dumping into the Indian market. Hindalco Industries submitted an application to the DGTR on behalf of the domestic industry to initiate an anti-dumping investigation on flat-rolled aluminum products imported from China.