China in 'massive' violation of EU solar panel deal: lobby group

(BRUSSELS) - Chinese solar panel makers are in "massive violation" of a settlement between China and the EU that ended a bitter trade feud last year, a key European lobby said on Thursday.

Lobby group EU ProSun has been a fierce critic of Chinese manufacturers which it says have destroyed Europe's solar panel industry by dumping their products at goods below cost on the European market.

In a statement, it said it had provided EU authorities with a raft of documents "containing about 1,500 proposals by Chinese solar companies offering prices below the minimum level agreed by the EU Commission and China."

The trade row over solar panels triggered the EU's biggest-ever trade probe covering a market worth some 21 billion euros ($28.5 billion) at its height.

But in July, Brussels and China came to a hard-won agreement, agreeing to a minimum price up to a certain threshold of imports, after which anti-dumping tariffs would apply.

EU ProSun head Milan Nitzschke said the agreed price floor was being widely undercut.

"Dumped Chinese solar products continue to flood the EU market, destroying European industry and jobs," Nitzschke said.

"The Commission must act fast to stop these violations and implement sanctions," he added.