Pressure is mounting on the EU to enact similar measures following the implementation of the Uyghur Coercion Prevention Act (UFLPA) in the US on June 21, and the forthcoming legislation could have a significant impact on the EU region's solar industry.

The European Commission (EC) is currently working on new legislation to ban products suspected of being made by forced Labour and is expected to present a proposal in September. The legislation announced in February is still in draft form. On July 18, Reuters reported that U.S. officials have been in talks with the European Union about the design of legislation.

Reuters reports that Thea Lee, the U.S. undersecretary of Labor for international affairs, 'reached out to her counterparts, including the European Union and Canada, on how to implement their respective restrictions on forced labor goods.'

'The bill is moving forward in the European Union,' Reuters quoted Lee as saying. In fact, the problem is advancing globally as well. My message to companies has been: You need to start taking this seriously, and this is why.'

'I think at the moment the companies are deliberately unaware. They don't need to know, so they don't know. 'This is a clear attack on European importers.

An EU spokesperson told PV Tech Premium that the EU needed to 'address the issue of goods made by forced Labour, whether they are made in the EU or elsewhere.'

Just before the UFLPA was implemented, it raised the standard of evidence required by importers, and the European Parliament passed a resolution in June citing alleged conduct problems in China's Xinjiang region and calling on its executive arm, the European Commission, to enact tougher trade sanctions against China.

The EU spokesperson told PV Tech Premium that 'European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen made it clear in her State of the Union address that the EU is proposing a ban on products produced by forced labor in the EU market, regardless of where they are made.'

'The Trade Policy Review circular of 18 February 2021 also highlighted that forced Labour should not find a place in the value chain of EU companies.'

Us pressure EU on forced labor legislation! China's solar industry could face new trade barriers

The EU has been reluctant to enact EU-wide legislation on imports suspected of forced Labour, but that could change given growing pressure from the US

In the past, the EU has focused more on putting the onus on importers to make sure their supply chains are clean, rather than legislating as in the US.

This was a major proposition made by US presidential climate envoy John Kerry during the COP26 conference in Glasgow, Scotland, last November, but it is not the first time the US has tried to get the EU to act differently.

Ms Lee, who supports mandatory due diligence standards for companies in the European Union, applauded the broader measures that could be taken by Canada and Mexico. These measures indicate that progress is being made towards the 'North American Common standards'.

In response to the European company's 'willfully unaware' assertion, a SolarPower Europe spokesperson told PV Tech Premium, 'Our members have worked very hard and at considerable cost to develop a transparent supply chain and to promote confidence that European solar materials are free from forced Labour. '

The trade body said it was developing a supply-chain monitoring programme to ensure solar PV modules entering Europe comply with international sustainability requirements and Labour standards, regardless of the country or region of origin.

The program, which aims to increase 'end-to-end transparency and sustainability' throughout the solar supply chain, is supported by 30 buyers and suppliers of head solar PV equipment and is expected to be publicly announced and piloted for the first time in the third quarter, SPE said. SPE will provide more details at that time.

Editor's Opinion:

The EU, which has closer and warmer ties with China than the US, has in the past been reluctant to adopt broad legislation to ban imports from parts of China or companies accused of using forced Labour.

But growing pressure from the United States, Europe's main ally, could lead the EU to strengthen some of the language in forthcoming legislation. Analysts say the EU will watch the impact of the UFLPA in the United States to help it decide.

Many companies are already self-sanctioning or investing in supply chain traceability systems. But it is a murky process because production and assembly are scattered across East Asia, meaning the risks of mixing are high. American companies know this all too well.

At the same time, many European countries have raised their renewable energy targets in the light of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the energy crisis engulfing the continent.

With module supplies already restricted across the EU, it is hard to see how these goals can be achieved if sanctions are imposed on major Chinese solar companies. European governments are likely to lobby against EU-wide restrictions and continue to hold importers liable. But American influence should not be underestimated.