First Solar probes rivals for patent infringement

(Image/Reuters)

First Solar (FSLR.O), opens new tab, the largest U.S. solar company, on Friday said it holds patents on a leading solar technology that it does not produce and was looking into possible infringement by several rival manufacturers.

WHY IT MATTERS

Solar cell technology known as Tunnel Oxide Passivated Contact (TOPCon) is rapidly overtaking rival crystalline silicon technologies because it is more efficient at turning sunlight into electricity. It is also more efficient than so-called thin film, which is First Solar’s primary offering.

TOPCon’s emergence has sparked a flurry of lawsuits in the last year between some of the world’s biggest solar manufacturers over patent infringement.

First Solar’s cadmium telluride solar panels do not use crystalline silicon, so it does not have TOPCon products in the market. It holds patents, however, dating back to its 2013 acquisition of a small company named TetraSun.

KEY QUOTE

“These patents are First Solar’s intellectual property, which we continue to leverage as part of ongoing efforts to develop the next generation of (photovoltaic) technologies,” First Solar General Counsel Jason Dymbort said in a statement.

CONTEXT

First Solar did not specify which companies it would investigate.

Many of the largest global solar manufacturers produce TOPCon products, including Trina Solar, Canadian Solar, JinkoSolar and Longi.

Content retrieved from:  https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/first-solar-probes-rivals-patent-infringement-2024-07-19/