The US Department of Commerce (DOC) has announced that it will launch an investigation to determine whether electrical transformer components which use electrical steel are being imported into the US in such quantities or under such circumstances which threaten national security.
The complaint filed by multiple members of US Congress as well as by industry stakeholders alleges violations of Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 in importation into the United States.
The US DOC stated that transformers are part of the US energy infrastructure and that laminations and cores made of grain-oriented electrical steel are critical transformer components. According to the DOC, electrical steel is necessary for power distribution transformers for all types of energy, including solar, nuclear, wind, coal, and natural gas, across the country. According to the DOC, an assured domestic supply of these products enables the US to respond to large power disruptions affecting civilian populations, critical infrastructure and US defense industrial production capabilities.