Overview
- The Federal Communications Commission, which Reuters reported on Tuesday, June 30, is drafting a rule to block imports of new foreign inverter models used to connect solar panels and batteries to the grid.
- The measure is driven by national-security and cybersecurity concerns after earlier reports that unlisted communication hardware was found in some Chinese units but a U.S. Department of Energy inspection of about 30 inverters found no evidence of deliberate malicious communications.
- China leads global inverter production with major suppliers such as Sungrow and Huawei supplying large shares of Western markets and driving down prices.
- A 2026 U.S. defense procurement ban already bars the Department of Defense from buying certain equipment from foreign entities of concern and a prior White House push to ban inverters stalled last year when Commerce shelved measures.
- If implemented, the rule could worsen supply-chain strain for solar projects that rely on Chinese components, raise costs or slow deployments, and push policymakers to pair restrictions with technical standards or waiver processes used for other equipment.