The European Patent Office has revoked Hanwha Solutions’ 689 patent covering passivation technology used in silicon solar cells, citing a lack of inventive step. The decision follows years of patent litigation between Hanwha Q Cells and solar manufacturers including JinkoSolar, Longi and REC across Europe, the US and Australia.
The Boards of Appeal of the European Patent Office (EPO) have decided to revoke patent EP2220689, owned by South Korean solar company Hanwha Solutions, a unit of the Hanwha Group, according to information in the EPO’s public Register.
The decision followed oral proceedings in the case. The written decision had not yet been issued at the time of publication.
According to the EPO, the patent was revoked in its entirety on the grounds of lack of inventive step.
The patent EP 2 220 689 – referred to as the 689 patent – covers a method for manufacturing a solar cell with a surface-passivating dielectric double layer, as well as a corresponding solar cell. The technology is intended to reduce recombination losses at the cell surface, improving solar-cell performance.
