Alex Rubin
Polysilicon is often described as one of the purest materials on Earth. It is used as the substrate material for a range of products, most importantly chips and solar panels.
Beijing has provided significant support to its domestic polysilicon industry to establish Chinese firms as the dominant global suppliers of solar-grade polysilicon and is seeking to push its firms to expand their share of semiconductor-grade polysilicon.
Chinese overproduction of polysilicon and silicon carbide is causing the global price for these materials to crater, undermining the short- and long-term financial viability of leading firms in the United States and allied countries.
Forced labor has already been linked to China’s critical minerals sector, in particular rare earth mining and refining, increasing the likelihood that forced labor is integrated into China’s polysilicon supply chain.
The Commerce Department has launched a Section 232 investigation into polysilicon and derivative products, providing a unique opportunity to ensure that critical infrastructure supply chains do not become dependent on Chinese inputs.
The administration should prohibit imports of Chinese-origin or -linked polysilicon or derivative products, and require products containing Chinese-origin or -linked polysilicon to document that no forced labor was used in their production.
The departments of Commerce, Defense, and Treasury should support U.S.-based expansion of polysilicon and silicon-carbide production capacity.
Introduction
The Chinese government is positioning Chinese firms to dominate the global market for polysilicon—a key material used in chip manufacturing. Polysilicon is the main substrate material used to manufacture wafers used in nearly every semiconductor fabrication facility (fab) around the world.
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