Chinese Solar Panels

I am thinking to import a awesome solar electric system from China at about half of what it cost in the Phills. The company in China says they will complete a 'Form E' for me. The Phills are apparently a signee of the ASEAN trade agreement. This means that any goods coming from China can only be subject to a max of 10 percent duty. I have some links to great product direct from China. Does anyone have any experience using this 'Form E'?

David

 

Hi David, with all due respect, i personally stay well away from the made in China....poor quality and terrible customer service reputation....than that's just me.

 

If you buy a solar system in the Phills it would have been made in China anyway. Probably 90 percent of consumer goods in the Phills are from China. That is just the reality as I see it.

 

Yep David, unfortunately you're absolutely right there.....and they are crap. I rather get US, Australian or Japanese made stuff wherever possible and if the budget allows.

 

I think with solar china is pretty much dominant, even in the US. I think for A US system we are taking double or triple the price and then you have import duties and shipping. So I am thinking on this purchase china may be my only option. I think that maybe some of the companies are reputable. But it is a crapshoot as far as quaility. Do you know that most of the raw powders for all the medicines we take are either from china or India?

David

 

Interesting story on China solar

China solar giant faces glare of US trade row - Yahoo! News

 

Importing in the Philippines is something for professionals.
Each item has different import duty's
China is not part of ASEAN.
Contact first a brooker before engaging in the tricky business of importing because beside of the import tax (variable) there is also 12 % VAT for most items.

 

In my opinion, you are better off importing them from the U.S., if you buy enough of them you can get a "very good" price on them. Then just ship them with a balikbayan company from the U.S. and they will be declared "household goods" which avoids any duty and VAT. You will stand a much better chance of the panels performing as expected, and lasting at least as long as the warranty, compared to buying direct from China. "Cheap" is not a bargain if they do not last or do not perform as expected! An example of this is if the solar panels are warranted for 20 years (not an uncommon warranty period for good quality solar panels), and only last 10! Any money you "saved" will be negated!! Solar panels have a long payback period! If they do not last, you are better off with an expensive electric bill!!

Use the search function above to search other recent threads about solar panels.

 

Although most products are made in China these days, you can buy it from Australia, UK or US, but it is the QA or Quality Assurance and standards of building the product that sets it apart. Why gamble on saving 50% of the price if it only lasts 2 years or less. The time to replace the faulty equipment will provide you setbacks long term.

I agree with Knowdafish......the catch up game to make the solar panels cost effective or to recuperate their costs can take up to 10 years before it starts paying for itself.

Remember...QUALITY, not QUANTITY.