Brussels’ new probe into Chinese wind turbines comes as Beijing grabs dominance over global market for solar panels.

On paper, the EU sees China as a partner in the fight against climate change.

But the trade reality tells a different story.

As Beijing responds to weak domestic demand with heavy state subsidies, it’s a perfect recipe for overcapacity — from electric vehicles to solar panels — just as the European Union puts the green transition at the top of its policy agenda.

On Tuesday, EU competition chief Margrethe Vestager will launch a new anti-subsidy investigation into China’s fast-growing and increasingly dominant wind turbine sector, as exclusively reported by POLITICO’s China Watcher.

Europe was once a leader in the renewable energy source, but China’s rapid development since 2018 has inflicted billions in losses on its leading wind power players, including Denmark’s Vestas and German-owned Siemens Gamesa, forcing them into drastic cost cuts.

The EU is keen to avoid a mistake it made over the past decade, when China’s solar panel-makers all but killed their European competitors. Today’s playbook on wind turbines is indeed “all too familiar” to European policymakers, said one EU diplomat, who was granted anonymity to discuss the imminent policy announcement.