Photo by Sirisak Boakaew/Getty Images.

The federal government’s decision to pause tariffs on solar panels from four Asian countries amid a trade dispute investigation has not resolved uncertainty for Minnesota’s only solar manufacturer.

The Ontario-based solar module manufacturer Heliene operates a plant in the northern Minnesota city of Mountain Iron. Like almost all U.S. solar manufacturers, it relies on components imported from southeast Asia. Heliene receives solar cells from Malaysia, one of the countries under scrutiny.

A U.S. Commerce Department probe is investigating whether China is evading tariffs by rerouting its production through Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia. Solar installers have said the action, on top of supply chain issues, would devastate the industry. Others say the case is important for expanding U.S. solar manufacturing. American solar firms provide just 20% of domestic demand.

Heliene President Martin Pochtaruk recently spoke with the Energy News Network about the state of the industry, looming challenges and an addition to its Minnesota plant. The following transcript was lightly edited for clarity and length.

A: It is too soon to say. Besides the high-level news there is no detail on how anything could be implemented and if there would be litigation on it or not, therefore keeping the risk level high.

A: The solar cells we bring to the U.S. for the production of solar modules come from Malaysia and we will not (import them) right now. If you bring in cells then you might be liable to pay import duties if after the investigation there’s a decision to impose an import duty on Malaysia parts.

A: To qualify a product from another country takes six to nine months and hundreds of thousands of dollars to test and certify. Solar panels are electric products — you can’t just slap anything in it and ship it.

A: It affects everybody’s business but at the same time we also understand that we have to follow the rule of law. When somebody has allegations of a possible crime, we don’t go to the judge and say, “Well, don’t investigate.”

A: Many other things are affecting the way we work. There are delays in import loading and unloading, and congestion. Half the ports in China are not shipping because they can’t find employees. There’s a lot going on that’s not related to what’s happening in the U.S.

A: We assemble parts that come from different places in the world — it’s no different than when you make a car. It’s all assembly. We have 10 components from two or three domestic and international suppliers.

A: We hope the Senate gets moving on that. There are several initiatives right now to bring it back in the climate package, or what used to be called the Build Back Better Act. But I’ll answer your question with a question: Why is it that the developers’ business is the only one that matters? Why is the concern only focused on their rate of return? We’ve been working with razor-thin margins for a lifetime.

A: When you’re looking at what is happening in other jurisdictions — South Africa, Europe — those are very different economies and very different power supply markets. But they, and many others, are moving forward, and they do not have tax rebates or investment tax credits. Solar markets work fine without incentives.

A: We’ve operated the factory in Minnesota since May 2017. Now with our new addition, we will increase our production from 150 megawatts annually to 550 MW. It will be one of the biggest solar production plants in the country.

A: We will hire between 60 and 65 employees, and we have more than 60 employees currently in the plant.

A: We use robots. The existing line has 18 employees working with robots. The new line will have just eight employees but will operate three times faster. We still need employees to move the panels and provide engineering capability to manage the software.

A: We should be done nearly on schedule in early July. We will bring the equipment in the second half of July and start the line up during August.

A: We’re from northern Ontario, so we are sort of neighbors to Minnesota. We’re both remote but for the last 120 to 130 years we have both hosted industrial development such as mining and steel making. We have labor that can work on highly advanced manufacturing.

A: When you look at power generation in the U.S., quarter after quarter, solar is almost 50% of it, and that will only grow.

This article first appeared on Energy News Network and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

▪ You must give Minnesota Reformer credit, including https://minnesotareformer.com and author.

▪ If you publish online, include the links from the story, and a link to Minnesota Reformer.

▪ Stories may be edited for in-house style or to shorten. More substantial changes should be noted as additional and conducted by your publication.

▪ You can publish our graphics and any photos that are credited to Minnesota Reformer with the stories with which they originally appeared. For any other uses, you must seek permission from us at [email protected]

▪ If you share the story on social media, please mention @mnreformer on Twitter and minnesotareformer on Facebook.

▪ Don’t sell ads against the story. Feel free, however, to publish it on a page with ads you’ve already sold.

▪ Content should not be published behind a paywall; please reach out to the editor-in-chief if you have questions about your particular paywall system.

by Frank Jossi, Energy News Network, Minnesota Reformer June 21, 2022

The federal government’s decision to pause tariffs on solar panels from four Asian countries amid a trade dispute investigation has not resolved uncertainty for Minnesota’s only solar manufacturer.

The Ontario-based solar module manufacturer Heliene operates a plant in the northern Minnesota city of Mountain Iron. Like almost all U.S. solar manufacturers, it relies on components imported from southeast Asia. Heliene receives solar cells from Malaysia, one of the countries under scrutiny.

A U.S. Commerce Department probe is investigating whether China is evading tariffs by rerouting its production through Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia. Solar installers have said the action, on top of supply chain issues, would devastate the industry. Others say the case is important for expanding U.S. solar manufacturing. American solar firms provide just 20% of domestic demand.

Heliene President Martin Pochtaruk recently spoke with the Energy News Network about the state of the industry, looming challenges and an addition to its Minnesota plant. The following transcript was lightly edited for clarity and length.

A: It is too soon to say. Besides the high-level news there is no detail on how anything could be implemented and if there would be litigation on it or not, therefore keeping the risk level high.

A: The solar cells we bring to the U.S. for the production of solar modules come from Malaysia and we will not (import them) right now. If you bring in cells then you might be liable to pay import duties if after the investigation there’s a decision to impose an import duty on Malaysia parts.

A: To qualify a product from another country takes six to nine months and hundreds of thousands of dollars to test and certify. Solar panels are electric products — you can’t just slap anything in it and ship it.

A: It affects everybody’s business but at the same time we also understand that we have to follow the rule of law. When somebody has allegations of a possible crime, we don’t go to the judge and say, “Well, don’t investigate.”

A: Many other things are affecting the way we work. There are delays in import loading and unloading, and congestion. Half the ports in China are not shipping because they can’t find employees. There’s a lot going on that’s not related to what’s happening in the U.S.

A: We assemble parts that come from different places in the world — it’s no different than when you make a car. It’s all assembly. We have 10 components from two or three domestic and international suppliers.

A: We hope the Senate gets moving on that. There are several initiatives right now to bring it back in the climate package, or what used to be called the Build Back Better Act. But I’ll answer your question with a question: Why is it that the developers’ business is the only one that matters? Why is the concern only focused on their rate of return? We’ve been working with razor-thin margins for a lifetime.

A: When you’re looking at what is happening in other jurisdictions — South Africa, Europe — those are very different economies and very different power supply markets. But they, and many others, are moving forward, and they do not have tax rebates or investment tax credits. Solar markets work fine without incentives.

A: We’ve operated the factory in Minnesota since May 2017. Now with our new addition, we will increase our production from 150 megawatts annually to 550 MW. It will be one of the biggest solar production plants in the country.

A: We will hire between 60 and 65 employees, and we have more than 60 employees currently in the plant.

A: We use robots. The existing line has 18 employees working with robots. The new line will have just eight employees but will operate three times faster. We still need employees to move the panels and provide engineering capability to manage the software.

A: We should be done nearly on schedule in early July. We will bring the equipment in the second half of July and start the line up during August.

A: We’re from northern Ontario, so we are sort of neighbors to Minnesota. We’re both remote but for the last 120 to 130 years we have both hosted industrial development such as mining and steel making. We have labor that can work on highly advanced manufacturing.

A: When you look at power generation in the U.S., quarter after quarter, solar is almost 50% of it, and that will only grow.

This article first appeared on Energy News Network and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

Minnesota Reformer is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Minnesota Reformer maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Patrick Coolican for questions: info@minnesotareformer.com. Follow Minnesota Reformer on Facebook and Twitter.

Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our web site. Please see our republishing guidelines for use of photos and graphics.

Frank Jossi is an independent journalist and consultant based in St. Paul and a longtime contributor to Midwest Energy News. His articles have appeared in more than 50 publications, including Minnesota Monthly, Wired and the Los Angeles Times. Frank has been a Fulbright journalism teacher in Pakistan and Albania, and a program director of the World Press Institute at Macalester College.

The Minnesota Reformer is an independent, nonprofit news organization dedicated to keeping Minnesotans informed and unearthing stories other outlets can’t or won’t tell. We’re in the halls of government tracking what elected officials are up to — and monitoring the powerful forces trying to influence them. But we’re also on the streets, at the bars and parks, on farms and in warehouses, telling you stories of the people being affected by the actions of government and big business. And we’re free. No ads. No paywall.

DEIJ Policy | Ethics Policy | Privacy Policy

Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our web site.