Trina Solar filed a complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) on September 30 to prevent Runergy and Adani Green Energy from “unlawfully importing and selling products that infringe two Trina patents related to TOPCon solar cell technology.” ” Trina is requesting an investigation under Section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930, which would direct Customs and Border Protection to prevent infringing imports from entering the United States.
“Protecting the integrity of Trina’s TOPCon technology is critical,” said Steven Zhu, president of Trinasolar US. “We are committed to defending our innovations and will take decisive action against any infringement of our intellectual property.”
The U.S. patents that Trina claims Adani and Runergy are infringing are U.S. Patent Nos. 9,722,104 and 10,230,009. Trina first filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Runergy earlier this year, involving the same two patents. Trina is now calling on the ITC to ban the importation of infringing TOPCon products into the United States.
“We are proud of our extensive patent portfolio and invite collaboration with U.S. partners who adhere to appropriate protocols for using our patented technology,” said Zhu. “Our technology innovations and intellectual property, along with Trina’s fully compliant supply chain, are critical to the success of solar manufacturing in the U.S.”
Trina says in its complaint to the ITC that it is investing in specialized production lines at its under-construction module assembly plant in Texas, which will only accept the patented TOPCon solar cells. Runergy’s alleged use of Trina’s technology in its production lines in Alabama and China, and Adani’s alleged use in India, and its import into the United States, put Trina’s domestic production at a disadvantage, the company said. Trina can file for a Section 337 investigation because she now participates in the domestic manufacturing market.
