Roadmap to an American Energy Manufacturing Renaissance

With a new Congress and administration, the Solar Energy Manufacturers for America (SEMA) Coalition and our members are more active than ever, doubling down on advocating for policies that will drive meaningful progress in American solar manufacturing. With a shifting legislative landscape and new opportunities for action, the SEMA Coalition remains committed to protecting and advancing policies that strengthen domestic solar manufacturing, accelerate energy deployment, and ensure long-term industry stability and growth.

To support this work, we’ve launched a brand-new website designed for better accessibility, clearer communication, and enhanced resources for our members and the public. Our refreshed presence reflects our commitment to innovation and impactful policy solutions that will help you stay informed on key issues and priorities.

To drive our advocacy efforts in the year ahead, SEMA’s policy priorities rely on a three-legged policy stool to support advanced manufacturing: trade protections, business tax credits for advanced manufacturing, and incentives for buying American made solar.

American solar manufacturers are competing with China to produce the world's fastest to production, lowest-cost, energy source. There is no fundamental reason for China to dominate solar manufacturing. The Chinese government is pursuing global energy dominance with its excess production of solar and batteries – seeking to use its subsidies and policy levers to corner the global market. To dominate the global energy sector, the Chinese-owned and headquartered companies are working in an OPEC-style fashion and have been willing to drop prices below production costs to take market share away from American producers.  

If we secure a level playing field, American solar manufacturers can compete with and beat China at scale and win the race in the most important energy source of the 21st century. SEMA is working to end China’s dominance and create a level playing field by forwarding policies to support advanced manufacturing. Our priorities include:

1. Trade protection: We need strong enforcement of existing trade policies and need to bring new tools online to prevent Chinese manufacturers from evading tariffs.
2. Business tax credits for manufacturing: We need to maintain business credits, such as the Section 45X Advanced Manufacturing Production Tax Credit, which has already enabled billions of dollars in private sector investment resulting in thousands of good-paying American jobs – and can allow billions more in investment and even more jobs if maintained.  We also need to ensure American taxpayers are not subsidizing Chinese producers who are supported by foreign subsidies and forced labor.
3. Incentives for buying American-made solar: We need demand-side incentives to buy American-made products produced by American workers, such as the Domestic Content Bonus for the energy generation business credits. It’s a no-brainer that companies should be rewarded for buying American and supporting manufacturing jobs here at home. Worse, without a demand-side incentive, while solar will still be the most economical new source of electricity in the U.S., much of it will be supplied by subsidized Chinese-controlled entities and will only result in an increase in our reliance on Chinese-backed supply chains.

As we look to the future, next-generation technologies such as tandem solar and direct wafering, offer the U.S. a vital opportunity to reclaim its solar manufacturing technology leadership. But, we need to create the right business environment for these technologies to thrive, accelerate their manufacturing capacity development, and leapfrog China.

In the 21st century, manufacturing dominance is about will. China doesn’t have a fundamental advantage over the U.S., so long as we refuse to yield one. We have the opportunity to unleash American energy abundance, break China’s dominance of critical supply chains, and support technological innovation. Our coalition is focused on reforms to support domestic manufacturing, de-risk critical supply chains from China, reduce consumer electricity costs, and generate significant savings for American taxpayers. In essence, winning the race for global energy leadership.

The SEMA Coalition and its members look forward to working with Congress and the Tromp administration to promote an America First, pro-manufacturing agenda to unleash American energy dominance and outcompete China. Critical to that will be maintaining support for the American advanced energy manufacturing renaissance currently underway, so that we can quickly and easily deploy the cheapest and fastest to production form of energy in the U.S.