Trina Solar disputes SolarWorld's claims on imports

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China-based Trina Solar disputed claims that it flooded the U.S. market with its imports in advance of a trade case decision.

In response to a report from the SolarWorld-led Coalition or American Solar Manufacturing indicating that Chinese imports of cheap solar panels have been on the rise in recent months, Trina Solar issued a statement Thursday calling the report "self-serving" and disputing its claims.

"We are opposed to any suggestion that our U.S. imports surged as the result of efforts to evade potential tariffs," Trina Solar officials said in the statement. "Nearly all of Trina Solar's U.S. shipments served orders tied to the Federal 1603 grant expiration. We stand by our practices and the fact they matched an increase in overall US market demand."

Trina Solar, based in China, has its U.S. headquarters in San Jose. The company was mentioned by name in a news release by the coalition issued Wednesday, which claimed that data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection showed that imports from China were on the rise late 2011.

The coalition's lawyer said Wednesday the group would seek retroactive duties on what they maintain are unfairly cheap Chinese imports.

A spokesman for Trina said more data disputing the coalition's claims would be released Friday.

The next step in the trade case will be a decision from the Department of Commerce on Feb. 13 about whether to levy import duties. On March 28, Commerce is scheduled to make its preliminary antidumping determination.

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