First Solar announced Tuesday that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) upheld the validity of its key solar cell technology patents.
The patent office denied three separate applications challenging the company's Tunnel Oxide Passivated Contact (TOPCon) patents. The applications came from competitors JinkoSolar, Canadian Solar, and Mundra Solar.
The decision reinforces First Solar's intellectual property position in solar manufacturing. First Solar currently maintains pending lawsuits against all three firms for alleged patent infringement. The patent upholding strengthens the company's legal standing and protects its technological advantage in high-efficiency crystalline silicon solar cells.