Section 232 solar price floor takes effect December 4 — 39 days for businesses to act on open projects

A federal trade action signed August 6, 2026, under Presidential Proclamation 11052 sets hard minimum import prices on solar equipment and adds a 15% tariff on covered products, effective December 4, 2026. The minimums apply at every stage of the supply chain: $21 per kilogram for polysilicon, $100 per kilogram for ingots and wafers, $0.22 per watt for solar cells, and $0.38 per watt for finished modules. The 15% tariff stacks on top of the price floor for downstream products.

The rule reaches nearly every solar module sold in the United States, including panels assembled domestically, because domestic cell manufacturing capacity covers only about 3.2 gigawatts out of 65.5 gigawatts of U.S. module assembly capacity. In other words, most panels labeled as U.S.-assembled still rely on imported cells that fall under the new floor. Procurement platform Anza reported in September that the median quote for post-December module delivery had already moved from 27 cents per watt to 38 cents per watt — a more than 40% increase — as suppliers repriced ahead of the effective date. The Solar Energy Industries Association projects U.S. solar additions running flat through 2031 as a direct result of the trade friction.

The rule does not apply retroactively to goods already imported or to contracts signed and priced before August 6. Businesses with a commercial rooftop, carport, or ground-mount solar project currently in procurement should confirm in writing with their installer whether the equipment is sourced and invoiced before December 4 and whether the quoted modules use imported or domestically produced cells. Projects still sourcing equipment after that date will pay against the new floors on every polysilicon-containing component from raw wafer through finished panel. The proclamation also includes an anti-stockpiling provision authorizing Customs and Border Protection to restrict imports if it suspects pre-deadline inventory buildup, so simply ordering large quantities in advance carries its own risk.