Chinese regulators have launched a probe into the trade practices of European suppliers of solar raw materials. So reports the Wall Street Journal.

China’s Ministry of Commerce said it launched the investigation to determine whether European companies are selling components at unfairly low prices. It will also look into whether the companies received illegal subsidies, the Journal said.

The situation reflects a broader conflict between China and its trading partners. The U.S. Commerce Department previously announced potential tariffs if it finds the Chinese dumping of solar products has hurt U.S. companies.

China’s imports of EU polysilicon jumped 30.8% in the first half of 2012 compared with the same period in the previous year, reaching 9,300 metric tons, the Journal said. In the same period, prices for polysilicon in China fell to $27.50 a ton, a decline of 47.5% from a year earlier.

Meanwhile, in a bid to help struggling solar companies, China State Grid unveiled a number of measures, including: free grid connection for small-and-medium-scale solar power producers. That’s according to Forbes.

In addition, Beijing will also soon launch an $11 billion emergency stimulus plan to rescue the solar industry, Forbes said.

Beijing has been aggressive about clean energy. Its latest five-year plan calls for expanding solar capacity to 21 gigawatts by 2015. China’s National Energy Administration also said every province will be required to construct a series of small photovoltaic plants that will generate more than 15 gigawatts of electricity in a bid to boost domestic solar demand, Forbes said.

To read the full Wall Street Journal article cited in this story, click here

To read the full Forbes article cited in this story, click here