Maxeon Protests CBP's Detention of Its Solar Panels Imported From Mexico
Singapore-headquartered Maxeon Solar Technologies says CBP continues to detain its solar panels imported from Mexico even though the company has provided proof that its solar panels comply with the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act.
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In a Nov. 14 news release, Maxeon maintained it has “fully and transparently mapped its supply chains” but said CBP reviewers allege it hasn't provided “sufficient documentation to prove Maxeon’s compliance” with UFLPA.
Maxeon’s protests are related to two product lines of solar panels. The company said it submitted a protest relating to the detention of 156 containers of its Performance line solar panels Oct. 7. Maxeon plans to submit another protest because even though CBP on Nov. 6 made no UFLPA-related findings on forced labor, CBP reviewers are still detaining the Performance line modules.
The company also said it filed protests on Sept. 27 and Oct. 4 for its Maxeon 6 products and its Maxeon 3 products, respectively. It said CBP suspended these protests and sent them to CBP’s Office of Regulations & Rulings Oct. 8 for further review.
“Over the past twenty years we have consistently taken extraordinary measures to ensure a clean and traceable supply chain that have cost us hundreds of millions of dollars more than our competition," outgoing CEO Bill Mulligan said in the release. "CBP has found no evidence of non-compliance with the UFLPA. Nonetheless, the Partnership track (under CTPAT) of CBP Electronics Center of Excellence and Expertise has decided to bar entry of our products.”
Mulligan said the company is a strong proponent of the UFLPA and has “provided CBP with tens of thousands of pages of documentation, including numerous walk throughs for explanation of standard manufacturing and shipping processes."
He said none of Maxeon's supply chains involves entities on the UFLPA list, "two of our supply chains do not even enter China, and yet the reviewers have declined to make the appropriate determination that UFLPA does not apply. This outcome is even more disappointing given the pressing need to facilitate our country’s transition to clean energy.”
CBP didn't immediately comment.
Maxeon also said it voluntarily previewed its supply chain with CBP for full transparency in 2022, and it has published detailed supply chain maps on its website.
Over 8,000 shipments from Mexico have been allowed entry into the U.S. in full compliance with UFLPA, Maxeon said.