China Sees EU Probe Into Wind Turbine Subsidies as Discriminatory

The European Union’s decision to open an investigation into Chinese subsidies for its domestic wind turbine manufacturers is a discriminatory measure against China, Beijing said on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, the European Commission’s Executive Vice-President and Anti-Trust Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said that the EU is launching a new inquiry into Chinese suppliers of wind turbines.

“We are investigating the conditions for the development of wind parks in Spain, Greece, France, Romania and Bulgaria,” Vestager said.

The EU needs a systematic approach toward subsidies for wind turbine manufacturers in China, she said, “And we need it before it is too late.”

“We can't afford to see what happened on solar panels, happening again on Electric vehicles, wind or essential chips,” Vestager added.

The China Chamber of Commerce to the EU (CCCEU) said in response to the new inquiry that “This action sends a detrimental signal to the world, suggesting discrimination against Chinese enterprises and endorsing protectionism.”

“As the green transition enters a pivotal stage, we urge the European side to reassess its approaches, recommit to dialogue and cooperation, and endeavour to establish a business environment that is fair, impartial, and non-discriminatory towards Chinese enterprises,” the CCCEU said in a statement on Tuesday.

“The outside world is worried about the rising tendency of protectionism in the EU,” foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said at a regular press briefing on Wednesday, as carried by Reuters.

The EU is also in the middle of a separate inquiry into EU imports of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) from China to determine whether BEV value chains in China benefit from illegal subsidization and “whether this subsidisation causes or threatens to cause economic injury to EU BEV producers.”

The findings of the investigation, which is expected to be completed by the autumn of 2024, will “establish whether it is in the EU's interest to remedy the effects of the unfair trade practices found by imposing anti-subsidy duties on imports of battery electric vehicles from China,” the European Commission has said.  

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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