ITC postpones the initial decision on the battery patent lawsuit between LG and SK

SEOUL, March 19 (Yonhap) – The US International Trade Commission (ITC) said Friday that it has postponed, to next month, the initial decision on a battery patent infringement suit between LG Energy Solution Ltd and SK Innovation Co.

The US Trade Commission was due to issue the initial decision on a battery patent lawsuit between South Korean competitors on Friday (US time), but postponed the date by another two weeks until April 2.

The International Trade Commission said in a statement released on Thursday that it needed more time to complete the initial decision, which would require an extension of the deadline.

The International Trade Commission said the final decision on the issue would also be postponed to August 2.

LG Chem Ltd. , Which owns the full stake in LG Energy Solution, filed a patent infringement lawsuit in September 2019, arguing that its domestic competitor, SK Innovation, violated four U.S. patents related to its battery technology. ). SK also accused LG of violating its EV battery patents, in a separate lawsuit that was filed the same month.

The battery patent lawsuit, arising from the LG trade secrets case, was filed with ITC in April 2019 against SK Innovation.

The decision will come on the patent legal dispute, as ITC decided last month in favor of LG on the trade secret issue and issued a 10-year import ban for SK, granting temporary permits for the patents, the batteries and components that Ford and Volkswagen needed to manufacture their products in the United States so they could From finding new partners.

The decision could jeopardize the construction of SK Innovation’s $ 2.6 billion battery plant in Georgia if US President Joe Biden does not object to the decision within 60 days or if the two companies do not reach an agreement during the presidential review period.

SK claims it does not need LG’s trade secrets, the way EV batteries are developed and manufactured is different from those of its competitor, and ITC has made an unfavorable ruling for the company for damaging the evidence.