WASHINGTON: The Obama administration is moving to impose stiff new tariffs on wind-energy towers made in China, the latest strike in an escalating trade war over clean energy.

The Commerce Department said in a preliminary decision May 30 that Chinese companies have received government subsidies on steel wind towers ranging from about 14% to 26%. The decision could result in tariffs of those amounts being imposed on about a dozen Chinese companies that export large numbers of steel wind towers to the United States.

It follows a Commerce Department decision earlier this month to impose tariffs averaging about 31% on solar cells and panels imported from China.

China has called the US action on solar equipment unfair and warned that higher tariffs could hurt efforts to promote clean energy.