American Superconductor Corporation a power technologies company, says it is taking a series of legal actions against Sinovel Wind Group Co. Ltd. AMSC is filing criminal and civil complaints in China against Sinovel and other parties alleging the illegal use of AMSC’s intellectual property. These cases follow an intensive investigation conducted by AMSC and law enforcement. Based in part on evidence obtained through the investigations, AMSC believes Sinovel illegally obtained and used AMSC’s intellectual property to upgrade its 1.5 MW wind turbines in the field to meet proposed Chinese grid codes and potentially allow for use of core electrical components from other manufacturers.
AMSC is seeking to compel Sinovel and the other parties to cease and desist from infringing its intellectual property and is also seeking monetary damages to compensate AMSC for its economic losses resulting from the infringement. AMSC also has filed a claim for arbitration to compel Sinovel to pay AMSC for past product shipments and to accept all contracted but not yet delivered core electrical components and spare parts under all existing contracts with the Company. The arbitration claim was filed with the Beijing Arbitration Commission in accordance with the terms of AMSC’s supply contracts with Sinovel.
Additional information about the legal actions is contained in a Current Report on Form 8-K that AMSC is filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. AMSC is now operating its business based on the assumption that Sinovel will not be a customer.
“We are taking legal action against Sinovel based on its contractual breaches and strong evidence of its criminal misconduct,” said AMSC President and Chief Executive Officer Daniel McGahn. “These actions send a clear message that AMSC is enforcing its intellectual property and commercial contracts.”
American Superconductor
www.amsc.com
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