Warning over wind turbine tower tariffs

China Chamber of Commerce for the Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Product said on Thursday the US decision to set a tariff on Chinese wind turbine towers will have an adverse impact on related industry in the US market.

The US Commerce Department decided on Wednesday to set anti-subsidy tariffs as high as 26 percent on Chinese wind turbine towers.

The preliminary decision was made in response to US turbine towers manufacturers' claim in December that their Chinese counterparts received subsidies from the government.

The duties will be between 13 percent and 26 percent on Chinese wind turbine makers.

The chamber said Chinese wind turbine towers haven been favored by the US large-scale wind power operators, promoting the application and widespread use of wind power in the market.

"The US Commerce Department's ruling will not only damage the benefits of end users but also hurt the development of the wind power industry in the US to a great extent," the chamber said.

According to the chamber, the move to impose "unreasonable" duties on Chinese enterprises is aimed at protecting US companies' competitive disadvantages in the international market.

During the global economic downturn, trade protectionism is rising and most of it is targeting China.

On Wednesday the United States International Trade Commission decided to levy anti-dumping tariffs of between 6.62 percent and 31.21 percent and an anti-subsidy duty of 15.81 percent on Chinese high pressure steel cylinders from China that the US Department of Commerce has determined are subsidized and sold in the United States at less than fair value.

High pressure steel cylinders are seamless, chromium-alloy steel containers designed specifically for transporting, storing and dispensing compressed or liquefied gases.

US manufacturers filed a complaint in November that Chinese imports are sold at less than fair value in the US and asked to levy an anti-dumping duty as high as 176.25 percent on Chinese products.

baochang@chinadaily.com.cn