[Insight] JinkoSolar and LONGi Settle Patent Disputes, but PV "Patent War" Continues

On September 19, 2025, a major announcement sent ripples through the photovoltaic (PV) industry. LONGi Green Energy (601012.SH) and JinkoSolar (688223.SH), two leading PV companies, jointly declared a global settlement of all ongoing patent disputes. At approximately 5:00 PM on the same day, both companies issued statements in Chinese and English, confirming that they had reached an agreement to resolve all patent-related claims and legal proceedings worldwide.

The most striking statement in the announcement was: "Both parties agree to terminate all ongoing patent dispute legal proceedings globally and have reached commercial arrangements for cross-licensing of certain core patents held by each party."

An industry insider commented to 21st Century Business Herald, "The reconciliation between JinkoSolar and LONGi may at least put an end to their public disputes over whether TOPCon or BC is the dominant technology."

This speculation is not unfounded. According to 21st Century Business Herald, the "cross-licensing of certain core patents" mentioned in the statement refers to the TOPCon and BC patents held by the two companies.

Patent Battles Between Industry Giants

As photovoltaic cell technology entered its third developmental phase, N-type cell technologies—TOPCon, BC, and HJT—took center stage. The rivalry between TOPCon (Tunnel Oxide Passivated Contact) and BC (Back Contact) technologies has garnered significant attention.

TOPCon utilizes an ultra-thin tunneling oxide layer and a polysilicon layer to achieve passivated contact, reducing carrier recombination and improving open-circuit voltage and conversion efficiency. BC, on the other hand, employs a front-grid-free back-contact structure, with both positive and negative electrodes located on the back, enhancing photoelectric conversion efficiency and power generation.

The technological rivalry began in 2023. That year, TOPCon gained significant market traction. According to data from the China Photovoltaic Industry Association, TOPCon cells accounted for approximately 23% of the market in 2023, a sharp increase from less than 10% for all N-type cells the previous year.

On September 5, 2023, during LONGi Green Energy’s 2023 interim results briefing, Chairman Zhong Baoshen stated, "In the next 5–6 years, BC cells will become the absolute mainstream of crystalline silicon cells."

This sparked a head-on confrontation between the TOPCon camp, led by JinkoSolar, and the BC camp, led by LONGi Green Energy.

However, despite their clear preferences for specific N-type technologies, both companies have diversified their operations. LONGi Green Energy maintains some TOPCon production capacity, while JinkoSolar has reportedly been developing BC production lines. In its 2025 interim report, JinkoSolar disclosed progress in BC technology development: "We have developed low-recombination metallization technology, compatible with TOPCon cell passivation contact technology and back-side patterned technology, forming a complete process for fully passivated contact BC cells. We are also conducting pilot testing and developing differentiated efficiency-enhancing technologies. Third-party certification has confirmed that our N-type BC cells achieved a maximum conversion efficiency of 27.2%."

In practice, both companies have ventured into each other’s technological domains. However, over the past two years, their technical rivalry has also fueled a series of patent disputes.

On December 4, 2024, JinkoSolar initiated multiple lawsuits in Jiangsu, accusing LONGi Green Energy of patent infringement. A month later, JinkoSolar filed additional lawsuits in Nanchang, Jiangxi. LONGi Green Energy retaliated in January 2025, filing a countersuit in the United States, alleging JinkoSolar infringed its TOPCon technology patents, and later suing JinkoSolar in Jinan, Shandong.

JinkoSolar expanded the battlefield to Japan and Australia, filing patent infringement lawsuits against LONGi Green Energy’s local subsidiaries in January and February 2025, respectively.

According to 21st Century Business Herald’s investigation on Tianyancha, as of July 14, 2025, a patent dispute case filed by LONGi Green Energy against JinkoSolar in Jinan Intermediate People’s Court was still scheduled for trial.

Reports also indicate that in late August and early September 2025, JinkoSolar sought to suspend LONGi Green Energy’s patent infringement cases at the European Unified Patent Court. The disputes, which spanned over six months, finally concluded with the joint statement from both companies.

Patent Protection: A Long-Term Battle

With the settlement of the patent disputes between LONGi Green Energy and JinkoSolar, does this signal the end of the debate over whether TOPCon or BC will dominate?

An industry insider told 21st Century Business Herald that the technical and patent disputes reflect a broader struggle for market share. Amid the current imbalance between supply and demand, the intensity of the debate over PV cell technologies has diminished.

For instance, at the SNEC PV Exhibition in June 2025, 21st Century Business Herald observed that mainstream PV module manufacturers no longer showcased products tied to a single technological route. A leader from a leading PV company even stated, "Debating whether TOPCon, BC, or HJT is superior is now meaningless."

However, the settlement between LONGi Green Energy and JinkoSolar carries significant implications. The insider noted, "LONGi Green Energy and JinkoSolar hold the most patents for BC and TOPCon technologies, respectively. Their cross-licensing of core patents is akin to forming a technological alliance. In the current oversupply situation, companies engaged in homogeneous competition without patent protection will struggle to survive."

The resolution of this patent dispute marks a significant milestone in promoting intellectual property protection within China’s PV industry.

21st Century Business Herald found that among the top ten global PV module manufacturers by shipment volume, seven have been involved in patent disputes, with most acting as both plaintiffs and defendants. Since the second half of 2024, companies including JA Solar, Trina Solar, JinkoSolar, LONGi Green Energy, and Canadian Solar have initiated patent lawsuits (including countersuits) in various global PV markets. Notably, in February 2025, Trina Solar filed a lawsuit against Canadian Solar for infringing two patents, seeking damages exceeding 1 billion yuan. As of August 2025, the case remained in the evidence exchange phase and had not yet proceeded to trial.

Wang Ping, a lawyer from Longan Shanghai Law Firm, previously told 21st Century Business Herald that PV patent litigation is highly complex due to the high technical barriers involved. Patents often span interdisciplinary fields such as materials science, nanostructures, and optical coatings, requiring detailed comparisons by third-party technical appraisal institutions (e.g., China Patent Technology Development Company). "The uncertainty of patent infringement litigation processes and outcomes can have complex impacts on the market value of patent-intensive companies."

Protecting intellectual property is increasingly seen as an effective means to curb the PV industry’s descent into homogeneous, cutthroat competition.

In November 2024, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) issued the Normative Conditions for the Photovoltaic Manufacturing Industry (2024 Edition), aimed at strengthening industry management and promoting transformation and structural adjustment. The document emphasized the importance of intellectual property, encouraging companies to enhance the development, application, and protection of IP and to establish robust IP compliance management systems.

On August 19, 2025, the MIIT and other departments held a PV industry symposium to address competitive order. The meeting called for standardizing product quality, cracking down on practices such as lowering quality controls, falsifying product power ratings, and infringing intellectual property.

For both companies and the industry, protecting intellectual property will remain a long-term endeavor.

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