JACKSONVILLE, Fla.,
April 13, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd.
(NYSE: JKS) ("JinkoSolar"), one of the largest and most innovative
solar module manufacturers in the world, today announced two
separate, significant developments in its defense against patent
litigation initiated by Hanwha Q CELLS ("Hanwha"). In
March 2019, Hanwha initiated the U.S.
International Trade Commission Investigation No. 337-TA-1151 (the
"1151 Investigation") against JinkoSolar, LONGi Solar, and REC
Group, asserting that the companies infringe U.S. Patent No.
9,893,215 ("the '215 patent").
On April 10, 2020, the
Administrative Law Judge ("ALJ") in the 1151 Investigation ruled
that JinkoSolar's products do not infringe the '215 patent.
ALJ MaryJoan McNamara issued an initial determination
granting JinkoSolar's motion for summary determination of
non-infringement. The Commission will now review the ALJ's ruling
and issue its opinion on that ruling within 30 days.
Separately, on December 10, 2019,
the U.S. Patent and Trademark Appeal Board (PTAB) instituted inter
partes review (IPR) proceedings of the patentability of claims
12-14 of the '215 patent claims in view of prior art. IPR is a
trial proceeding conducted at the PTAB to review the patentability
of one or more claims in a patent. The PTAB's institution
decision states that JinkoSolar and REC Group have "established a
reasonable likelihood of prevailing in showing that claims 12-14 of
the '215 patent are unpatentable." Based on the schedule
provided by the PTAB, JinkoSolar anticipates a final written
decision on the issue of patentability by December 2020.
"These independent determinations by
two separate bodies confirm what we have said from the start of
this litigation: Hanwha's lawsuit, based on a single patent, was
without legal or technical merit, and was brought only to slow down
our momentum," said Kangping Chen,
CEO of JinkoSolar. "JinkoSolar strongly supports fair
competition in the marketplace, and respects the valid intellectual
property of all participants in our field. We look forward to
continuing to serve our global
customers with innovative, industry-leading solar modules, and
extending our marketplace momentum."
About JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd.
JinkoSolar (NYSE: JKS) is one of the largest and most innovative
solar module manufacturers in the world. JinkoSolar distributes its
solar products and sells its solutions and services to a
diversified international utility, commercial and residential
customer base in China,
the United States, Japan, Germany, the United
Kingdom, Chile,
South Africa, India, Mexico, Brazil, the United
Arab Emirates, Italy,
Spain, France, Belgium, and other countries and regions.
JinkoSolar has built a vertically integrated solar product value
chain, with an integrated annual capacity of 11.5 GW for mono
wafers, 10.6 GW for solar cells, and 16 GW for solar modules, as of
December 31, 2019.
JinkoSolar has over 15,000 employees across its 7 productions
facilities globally, 14 overseas subsidiaries in Japan, South
Korea, Vietnam,
India, Turkey, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, United
States, Mexico,
Brazil, Chile and Australia, and global sales teams in
China, United Kingdom, France, Spain, Bulgaria, Greece, Ukraine, Jordan, Saudi
Arabia, Tunisia,
Morocco, Kenya, South
Africa, Costa Rica,
Colombia, Panama, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Myanmar, Sri
Lanka, Thailand,
Vietnam, Poland and Argentina.
To find out more, please see: www.jinkosolar.com.
Safe Harbor Statement
This press release contains forward-looking statements. These
statements constitute "forward-looking" statements within the
meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended,
and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended,
and as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by
terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "future,"
"intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates" and similar statements.
Among other things, the quotations from management in this press
release and the Company's operations and business outlook, contain
forward-looking statements. Such statements involve certain risks
and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Further
information regarding these and other risks is included in
JinkoSolar's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission, including its annual report on Form 20-F. Except as
required by law, the Company does not undertake any obligation to
update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise.
For investor and media inquiries, please contact:
In China
Ms. Ripple Zhang
JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd.
Tel: +86 21-5183-3105
Email: ir@jinkosolar.com
Mr. Christian Arnell
Christensen
Tel: +86 10 5900 2940
Email: carnell@christensenIR.com
In the US
Ms. Linda Bergkamp
Christensen, Scottsdale,
Arizona
Tel: +1-480-614-3004
Email: lbergkamp@ChristensenIR.com
View original
content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/jinkosolar-announces-favorable-developments-in-patent-litigation-brought-by-hanwha-q-cells-301039227.html
SOURCE JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd.