April 24 (Reuters) - Some of the world's largest solar equipment makers on Wednesday asked President Joe Biden's administration to impose steep tariffs on panels and cells from four Asian countries as they seek to protect billions of dollars in investments in U.S. manufacturing.
Seven companies - Korea's Hanwha Qcells , Switzerland's Meyer Burger , Norway's REC Silicon
and U.S. companies First Solar Inc , Convalt Energy, Mission Solar and Swift Solar - are behind the petitions filed with the U.S. Department of Commerce and the International Trade Commission, they said in a statement.
The group, named the American Alliance for Solar Manufacturing Trade Committee, is accusing Chinese companies with factories in Malaysia, Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand of flooding the U.S. market with panels priced below their cost of production. That has caused prices to collapse by more than 50%, threatening their U.S.-made products, they said.
The petitions come as the Biden administration has voiced concerns in recent weeks over China's massive investment in factory capacity for clean energy goods.
(Reporting by Nichola Groom Editing by Tomasz Janowski)
((nichola.groom@thomsonreuters.com;))
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