India Imposes 5-Year Countervailing Duty On Vietnamese Solar Glass Imports

On May 10, 2025, India's Ministry of Finance (Revenue Department) issued Notification No. 03/2025 Customs (CVD), formally implementing a countervailing duty on imports of textured tempered glass (both coated and uncoated) from Vietnam. This action follows a final affirmative ruling issued on February 11, 2025, by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, which concluded that Vietnamese producers had benefited from unfair government subsidies.

The duty will remain in effect for five years and applies a minimum import price mechanism. For Flat (Vietnam) Co., Ltd., the minimum price is set at $593 per ton. For all other Vietnamese producers, the threshold is slightly higher at $664 per ton. If the actual landed value of imported glass is below these levels, importers must pay the difference as a countervailing duty.

The affected product is a specialized type of tempered glass used primarily in solar photovoltaic and solar thermal applications. Known in the market as solar glass, low-iron solar glass, or high-transmittance photovoltaic glass, the product must meet strict technical specifications: a minimum transmittance of 90.5%, thickness not exceeding 4.2mm (±0.2mm tolerance), and at least one edge exceeding 1500mm in length. The glass may be either coated or uncoated and typically contains low iron content (under 200 ppm) to maximize transparency. Application of anti-reflective coatings can further boost transmission levels by 2–3%.

This move complements India's existing anti-dumping duties on the same Vietnamese products, which are also based on a minimum price system. In practice, the actual anti-subsidy duty imposed will be calculated as the difference between the determined countervailing duty and any already applicable anti-dumping duty.

The case originally began on February 13, 2024, when Borosil Renewables Limited, a domestic solar glass manufacturer, filed an application for a countervailing duty investigation. The investigation covered imports under Indian customs code 70071900, with additional relevance to codes 70031990, 70051010, 70051090, 70052190, 70052990, 70053090, 70072190, 70072900, 70169000, 70200090, and 85414011.

The ruling reflects India's broader policy direction to protect and promote domestic solar manufacturing capabilities in the face of rising global competition and to encourage self-reliance in the renewable energy supply chain.