The European Union may follow in the footsteps of the United States in imposing antisubsidy and antidumping sanctions on Chinese photovoltaic firms, Guangzou's Time Weekly reports.

On July 25, when solar energy enterprises led by Germany's Solarworld filed an application for antidumping investigations against their Chinese competitors, the solar industry trade war began spreading from the US to Europe.

Solarworld vice president Milan Nitzschke said Chinese companies had captured 80% of Europe's PV market in only a few years. Further, these Chinese firms had been dumping their products regardless of cost.

With the US already having imposed antidumping and antisubsidy sanctions against Chinese solar cell makers, Solarworld also urged the EU to implement dual sanctions against all Chinese PV products.

Time Weekly said that if the EU decided to impose the sanctions, it could threaten the survival of China's solar enterprises.

Four Chinese PV enterprises held a press conference in Beijing on July 26, expressing the hope that the Chinese government will help them pressurize the EU to reject the case.

As early as Oct. 19 last year, Solarworld's US branch and six other US-based solar energy companies filed dual antidumping and antisubsidy lawsuits against Chinese solar cell manufacturers, demanding that more than US$1 billion in tariffs be imposed on solar products imported from China.

On March 20, a US government ruling levied temporary antisubsidy duties of 2.9%-4.73% on Chinese PV products. On May 18, another ruling levied 31.14%-249.96% antidumping tariffs on Chinese products.

Currently, 60% of China's PV products are exported to Europe. More importantly, the Chinese PV industry has captured 50% of the world market.

It was reported that the German government and 25 PV enterprises in Europe are supporting Solarworld in its lawsuit.

An industry expert said Chinese PV enterprises are facing these dual measures mainly because European countries and the US are resorting to protectionism to keep their solar energy industries afloat amid the economic slowdown and a decline in demand and subsidies. As the PV industry is deemed a clean-energy industry, the US and China have strategies in place to encourage its development. Given that China's solar cell production capacity is the highest in the world, keeping Chinese rivals in check is seen as crucial to boosting the solar energy industries of other countries.