AMSC, a global solutions provider serving wind and grid leaders, today provided an update regarding its legal actions in China. As previously reported, AMSC has filed for arbitration and has filed three civil lawsuits in the Chinese courts against Sinovel Wind Group Co., Ltd. (Sinovel) and companies related to Sinovel. In total, AMSC is seeking to recover more than $1.2 billion for contracted shipments and damages from Sinovel in these cases, which stem from Sinovel’s contractual breaches in March 2011 and AMSC’s discovery of intellectual property theft by Sinovel employees in June 2011.
The smallest of the civil cases is a copyright infringement complaint filed with the Hainan Province Number 1 Intermediate People’s Court case against Sinovel and Dalian Guotong Electric Co. Ltd (Guotong), a company related to Sinovel. Guotong is a supplier of power converter products to Sinovel. AMSC has compiled and presented to the Hainan court evidence demonstrating that its copyrighted software is being infringed by Sinovel and Guotong. AMSC is seeking a cease and desist order and damages totaling approximately $200,000 in this case.
In December 2011, Sinovel filed a jurisdiction opposition motion requesting its dismissal by the Hainan Province No. 1 Intermediate People’s Court, saying the case should be governed by the Beijing Arbitration Commission. On February 3, 2012, AMSC received the Civil Ruling from the court, which granted Sinovel’s motion and dismissed the entire case.
“We are starting to see motion from the Chinese courts, and proceedings are getting underway as expected,” said AMSC President and Chief Executive Officer Daniel P. McGahn. “The Hainan court’s dismissal of our smallest case is not altogether unexpected, and we are appealing the ruling. We continue to have confidence in all of our cases and expect that our legal actions will yield a positive outcome.”
About AMSC
AMSC generates the ideas, technologies and solutions that meet the world’s demand for smarter, cleaner … better energy. Through its WindtecTM Solutions, AMSC enables manufacturers to launch best-in-class wind turbines quickly, effectively and profitably. Through its GridtecTM Solutions, AMSC provides the engineering planning services and advanced grid systems that optimize network reliability, efficiency and performance. The company’s solutions are now powering gigawatts of renewable energy globally and enhancing the performance and reliability of power networks in more than a dozen countries. Founded in 1987, AMSC is headquartered near Boston, Massachusetts with operations in Asia, Australia, Europe and North America. For more information, please visit http://www.amsc.com.
