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US sets minimum import prices for polysilicon and a 15% tariff on its derivatives, from December

The floor prices run from $21 a kilogram for polysilicon to $0.38 a watt for solar modules. The material underpins both chips and solar panels.

Catching up: the original came out on . This story was published later, when the site opened.

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Sources: 1 · top grade 1How evidence is graded

15%

US tariff on polysilicon derivatives from 4 December, plus minimum import prices

Grade 1 · Primary

Source: Executive Office of the President, Federal Register

What changed
A US presidential proclamation of 6 August set minimum import prices for polysilicon and its derivatives, and a 15% tariff on the derivatives, from 4 December 2026.
Who it counts
Imports into the US of polysilicon and products made from it: ingots, wafers, solar cells and solar modules, as listed in the proclamation's annexes.
What it does not tell you
What it will do to chip and solar prices in the US. The proclamation sets the rules; its effects will only show after December.

The full story Check the source

A US presidential proclamation signed on 6 August sets minimum import prices for polysilicon and products made from it, and a 15% tariff on those derivative products, from 4 December 2026 [1].

The minimum prices are $21 a kilogram for polysilicon, $100 a kilogram for ingots and wafers, $0.22 a watt for solar cells and $0.38 a watt for solar modules [1].

Importers must document that the first arm's-length sale in the US will be at or above the minimum price [1].

What it covers

Imports of polysilicon, the base material for semiconductors and solar products, and its derivatives listed in the proclamation's annexes [1].

The Commerce Secretary found that the US share of global polysilicon production capacity fell from 50% in 2005 to less than 2% in 2024, and that semiconductor-grade polysilicon is only 2.4% of global production [1].

The Secretary may change the prices, exempt trading partners that set equivalent minimum prices, and act against companies stockpiling imports before December [1].

The 15% tariff replaces a narrower safeguard tariff on solar cells and modules that expired in February 2026 [1].

What it does not tell you

What it will do to US prices for chips or solar panels, or to supply. That will depend on how importers respond [1].

Sources and their grades

  1. Executive Office of the President, Federal Register, Proclamation 11052: Adjusting Imports of Polysilicon and Its Derivatives Into the United States. Read 29 September 2026. Grade 1 · Primary Signed 6 August 2026, published 11 August (document 2026-16400). The market figures in it are the Commerce Secretary's findings.

A grade says how much weight a source will take, from 1 (a body that can compel an answer and has nothing to sell) to 5 (somebody describing what they sell, or themselves). The standard sets out what each grade may be used for.

Filed under Semiconductors Solar Trade

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