WTO rules in US' favour on solar dispute, says measures not justified under GATT

NEW DELHI: The World Trade Organization ( WTO) has ruled in the US' favour and against India's domestic content requirements for solar products under the national solar mission.

In its report made public on Wednesday, the WTO said the measures India has taken are "not justified" under the Agreement on Trade-Related Investment Measures ( TRIMs) and General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade( GATT).

The US had initiated this dispute in February 2013 because it considered that India’s domestic content requirements are inconsistent with WTO rules that prohibit discrimination against imported products.

Under the mission, solar power developers are mandated to use Indian-manufactured cells and modules rather than US or other imported solar technology that the US considered a breach of international trade rules.

The US has said that since India enacted these domestic content requirements in 2011, its solar exports to India have fallen by over 90%.

Under WTO rules, the report will be adopted if either party so requests within 60 days of the report’s circulation, or either party may appeal the report before it is adopted.

This is the US' second major win against India in WTO dispute as last year in June, the WTO ruled in the US' favour in a dispute challenging India’s ban on various U.S. agricultural products – such as poultry meat, eggs, and live pigs – to protect against avian influenza.