(Reuters) - The U.S. solar industry is losing out on the creation of around 62,000 jobs and $19 billion in investment thanks to Trump administration tariffs on imported panels imposed nearly two years ago, according to a report published on Tuesday.
The industry’s top trade group, the U.S. Solar Industries Association (SEIA), released the study two days before federal trade officials are due to hold a hearing to review the impact of the tariffs on solar panels.
The outcome of the International Trade Commission’s midterm review could decide whether President Donald Trump makes changes to or even cancels the four-year tariff that was imposed in early 2018. The levy started at 30%, and is designed to drop by five percentage points each year.
If that regime is left unchanged, the solar industry will create 62,000 fewer jobs than it otherwise would have between 2017 and 2021, SEIA said in the study. That’s more than the 53,000 workers in the U.S. coal mining industry, according to government data.
The $19 billion in lost investment equates to 10.5 gigawatts in missed solar energy installations,