A Minnesota renewable energy program has come under inspection from the World Trade Organization in a dispute between the U.S. and India. Lawmakers of the State established the Made in Minnesota Solar Incentive Program in 2013 as a way to uplift the Minnesota solar energy and create jobs.
The program along with similar incentives in seven other states, is now in the international limelight as the U.S. and India tussle over Indian solar energy policy.
The U.S. government is trying to get the WTO to bar India from giving incentives to Indian solar firms, advocating that it’s unfair to American solar companies. India counters US’s point stating that Minnesota and several other states already have renewable energy policies that favour the local companies.
Ben Lilliston, who directs climate strategies at the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, stated that the legal battle dosen’t seem to getting resolved anytime soon.
He said the fact that state laws are involved displays the uniqueness of the situation.
Lilliston also said, India has cited the solar energy policy as critical to reaching goals under the Paris climate agreement. He said the case raises questions about how much the WTO and international trade agreements are acknowledging climate change and the actions needed to achieve aggressive greenhouse gas reductions.
Policies like India’s and Minnesota’s are looked down upon by WTO in the past.
“Past dispute panels have consistently ruled against these types of programs that give incentives to local businesses,” he said.
A report earlier this month was published by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy concluding that trade rules tend to benefit multinational corporations but make it tough for the governments to set climate-related policies.
