Washington has moved to shield domestic polysilicon producers, pairing a 15 percent tariff with mandatory minimum import prices for the silicon feedstock used in chips and solar panels.
The August 6 proclamation, signed under Section 232, requires importers to pay at least $21 per kilogram for raw polysilicon and $100 per kilogram for ingots and wafers. Solar cells and modules face their own per-watt floors.
China dominates global polysilicon output, making it the clear target of the floor-plus-tariff hybrid that Reuters first reported the administration was weighing.
Hemlock Semiconductor in Michigan and Wacker Chemie’s Tennessee plant stand to gain. SIA data puts chips at just 2.4 percent of global polysilicon demand, though the industry relies on the much larger solar market to keep the material economical.
The likely knock-on effects include pricier wafers and thinner margins for Chinese exporters, which may have to absorb the duties or find new markets. The order extends a widening campaign to cut US reliance on Chinese components, following last week’s draft ban on Chinese optical transceivers in American data centers.
