Confusion Reigns Over China's Polysilicon Import Policy

The solar industry has been left in confusion over whether China has started restricting imports of the solar-module material polysilicon, with some manufacturers reporting that shipments have been held up by customs officials and that buyers are delaying orders.

Those companies say that China has added waste silicon to a list of restricted imports, either as part of a deliberate move to protect its domestic polysilicon industry or for environmental reasons. However, other sources, including one major polysilicon distributor, said they weren’t aware of any change in Chinese policy.
Calls to the Chinese embassy in Washington were not returned Wednesday.

Rick Doornbos, president and chief executive of Hemlock, Mich.-based Hemlock Semiconductor, one of the world’s largest polysilicon producers, wrote in an email to Clean Technology Insight that “Yes, China has recently added ‘waste’ silicon to its list of restricted imports.” He said that the restriction applies to “tops and tails from silicon ingot production, broken silicon wafers, and the small fraction of polysilicon production that does not meet quality specifications.”

“We believe the driver for this was environmental concerns with some of the procedures used by local recyclers who convert this material into usable silicon,” he said.

Doornbos said that the scrap polysilicon that is affected by the restriction is used in about 10% of Chinese solar cell manufacture, a relatively small and declining portion of overall production.

CNN