Transformation Realized: Making the Case for Post-Brexit Tariff Removal
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March 12, 2025
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With the European Commission (“EC”) imposing a 65% combined tariff on solar technology made in China, by 2018 the development of the solar technology industry across the European Union (“EU”) and in the UK was falling behind – with solar energy accounting for just 3.9% of the total renewables share of energy in the UK. With Brexit on the horizon, now was the time for action.
SolarPower Europe, a leading industry association representing the solar energy sector, were looking to campaign the UK Government and secure their commitment to remove tariffs on solar technology after Brexit – paving the way for affordable renewable energy and a cost-effective path become climate neutrality.
By engaging and building a strong cross-party support base and generating wider awareness of the issues with relevant political stakeholders, significant changes in trade terms across both the UK and the EU were actioned.
- In July 2018, the UK Government published the provisional findings of its call for evidence on trade remedies, this included a recommendation to remove tariffs on solar technology from China once the UK leaves the EU.
- In September 2018, the EC subsequently decided to remove tariffs across the 27 Member States, driven by a desire to align with the broader market and accelerate Europe’s energy transition – with the aim by 2030 to reach almost 600 GW of installed solar capacity and to avoid falling behind the UK in renewable energy policy post-Brexit.
- By 2023, after the removal of tariffs and surge in rooftop solar installations in the UK, British households made a record £31 million from exporting renewable energy back to the grid.
Our Role
- FTI Consulting provided strategic counsel and political advice to SolarPower Europe to identify suitable UK and EU political stakeholders and develop key messaging points. This engagement was conducted amid increasingly tense negotiations between the EU and the UK, requiring carefully balanced, bipartisan yet effective messaging.
- Building a cross-party support base by liaising directly with MPs’ offices, drafting parliamentary questions and providing messaging, this level of engagement quickly established a strong group MPs willing to raise the issue in their respective Parliaments.
- This successful two stage campaign, in the UK and then the EU, created parliamentary activity and wider debate that would lay the groundwork for direct governmental engagement in the autumn of 2018 and a commitment from both Governments for a transformation of the sector in 28 markets before the UK’s departure from the EU in March 2019.
Published
March 12, 2025
Key Contacts
Senior Managing Director, Head of UK Public Affairs