You are My Sunshine: China’s Solar Panel Makers to Benefit from VAT Rebates

According to China’s official Xinhua news agency, the government will refund 50 percent of solar producers’ value added tax from October 1, 2013 through December 31, 2015 in order to prop up the struggling sector.  Xinhua reports that the country’s top 10 solar panel makers have up to 100bn yuan ($16.3bn) in debt.  Two major producers, cell and panel producer Suntech Power Holdings and LDK Solar Company, which produces modules and silicon wafers, have already defaulted on their debt.  The article, summarized in BBC News, points out that China’s current level of production capacity is excessive, despite policies aimed at expanding Chinese demand:  “Even if the domestic market is expanded, China’s production overcapacity can not be fully digested and some manufacturers must be eliminated, analysts have pointed out, expecting the industry to see drastic eliminations and accelerated integrations in the coming months.”