Transferred from: Finance Associated Press

Finance Associated Press, January 3 (Reporter Liu Mengran) The patent dispute over photovoltaic technology has once again triggered a "war", JinkoSolar (688223. SH) sued LONGi Green Energy in the Nanchang Intermediate People's Court. JinkoSolar asked LONGi Green Energy (601012. SH) immediately stopped infringing on the relevant invention patent rights and compensated for economic losses, and the case has been formally filed and accepted.

Regarding the progress of the case, JinkoSolar told the Financial Associated Press reporter that the relevant patents involved include solar cells and their preparation methods, photovoltaic modules, solar cell module invention patents, etc., involving TOPCon cell technology and module technology.

As of press time, LONGi Green Energy has not responded to this matter.

Tianyancha App shows that LONGi Green Energy recently added a new case, the relevant cause of action is a dispute over infringement of invention patent rights, the plaintiff is Shangrao Xinyuan Yuedong Technology Development Co., Ltd., a member of JinkoSolar, and the legal representative is Li Xiande. The defendants include LONGi Green Energy and others.

JinkoSolar was the first company to promote TOPCon technology, with more than 75GW of N-type cell production capacity. The company has publicly stated that it encourages the industry to achieve a win-win situation through patent licensing and paid use, but it also supports a resolute crackdown on the practice of "using it without saying hello".

However, it should be noted that although LONGi Green Energy and JinkoSolar are both first-tier PV module shipment companies, they are not the same technical route, and LONGi Green Energy has not focused on the TOPCon field, but instead plans HPBC2.0 by the end of 2025 to form a production capacity of about 50GW.

Some industry analysts told the Financial Associated Press reporter that TOPCon battery technology has become a "mainstream technology" at the same time, but also faces the problem of technological competition, many companies have poured into the field of TOPCon, resulting in extremely fierce market competition, rapid decline in product prices, corporate profit margins have been compressed, except for a few head enterprises, most of the enterprises are difficult to make profits.

Photovoltaic technology is changing rapidly, and patent infringement disputes have been frequent since last year. At present, the top integrated enterprises in module shipments are actively or passively involved in the PV patent battle, such as Trina Solar (688599. SH) alleges patent infringement on Canadian Solar 688472.SH's TOPCon battery technology. According to the data, Trina Solar claimed its rights after registering its intellectual property rights with the Customs, and Shanghai Customs seized a batch of N-type module products sent to Europe by Canadian Solar.

Li Zhenguo, president of LONGi Green Energy, publicly said that the development speed of the industry was greater than the development speed of production capacity, and even if some of the company's patents were used, everyone did not care too much. However, in the case of a serious imbalance between supply and demand, others use their own technology to seize their own market, and everyone's awareness and pressure to protect their rights will also be strengthened.

He further said that the national system for the protection of intellectual property rights is also improving, and the protection in this area will become stronger and stronger in the future. Enterprises should consciously take the initiative to establish a technical moat, so that the photovoltaic industry can develop in a healthy and orderly manner.

In July 2024, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) issued the "Standard Conditions for the Photovoltaic Manufacturing Industry (2024 Version)" (draft for comments), which aims to strengthen the management of the photovoltaic manufacturing industry and promote the transformation, upgrading and structural adjustment of the industry. The document particularly emphasizes the importance of intellectual property rights, encourages enterprises to strengthen the development, application and protection of intellectual property rights, and establishes a sound intellectual property compliance management system to promote the high-quality development of China's photovoltaic industry.

(Finance Associated Press reporter Liu Mengran).