The post Tariffs Drive New U.S. Solar Panel Production—Will Texas Miss Out? appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.

Solar power plant in Central Texas getty Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has asked for a legislative inquiry into two companies that are constructing large scale solar panel manufacturing plants in Texas in reaction to a FOX News report that the companies have links to China and Chinese government officials. While Patrick’s ultimate goal is not clear, he and other state officials who have been quick to criticize should think about the long-term needs of the state and the nation. Limiting solar panel manufacturing will prove short-sighted indeed. Ignoring for a moment that these companies are publicly traded in the U.S., the fact that they are investing hundreds of millions of dollars to build these facilities anywhere in the U.S. is a direct response to the 50% tariffs on Chinese solar cells to encourage U.S. based production. Tariffs give a massive economic incentive to foreign companies to invest and build manufacturing plants in the U.S. In 2003, Toyota broke ground on its light truck plant in Texas in response to U.S. trade policy that imposed a 25% import tariff on light trucks. Toyota now employs thousands of Texans and has invested billions of dollars in the state. So, it is not surprising that the first movers for solar cell and solar panel manufacturing in Texas would have ties to the world’s largest manufacturers that are based in China. Those companies have the state-of-the-art technology required to scale up production of more efficient solar cells—taking the 19th century invention well beyond the first practical applications of Bell Labs in the 1950s and improving on NASA’s well known use. As a practical solution to meeting exploding electricity demand in Texas and across the nation, the U.S. needs more solar panels – yesterday. To protect U.S. energy security, the manufacturing of these components…

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Filed under: News - @ December 12, 2025 3:20 am