Australia is set to launch an anti-dumping investigation against Chinese photovoltaic manufacturers.
The country's Anti-Dumping Commission is looking to see whether Chinese PV panel manufacturer have been selling their products at below cost or at unprofitable export prices, according to a report in The Sydney Morning Herald.
Solar PV prices have dropped about 80% in the past six years, according to the newspaper.
The inquiry follows similar investigations in the United States and the European Union, which have imposed tariffs on imported Chinese PV panels in an effort to protect their domestic solar industries.
Local PV manufacturers welecomed the move. Richard Inwood, a manager at Adelaide-based PV manufacturer Tindo Solar, told The Sydney Morning Herald that the company backed "any initiative that embeds a fair go and fair market price for Australian manufacturers."
Australia will import an estimated about A$1.4 billion in PV panels this year, according to Tindo.
While falling prices and increased competition from China is making business tough for the likes of Tindo, they have also helped spur a PV expansion in the country and helped offset incentive cutbacks.
According to The Sydney Morning Herald, some 1.3 million Australian homes have installed rooftop PV systems and that number is increasing at about 50,000 per quarter.
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