Breaking News! US ITTC preliminary ruling: Four Chinese PVDF enterprises found to have infringed intellectual property rights

On August 27, a key progress was made in the 337 investigation on lithium battery PVDF patents initiated by Syensqo. The US International Trade Commission (ITC) administrative judge issued a preliminary ruling, finding that four Chinese chemical companies' involved PVDF products infringed Syensqo's valid patents, and also confirmed that Syensqo met the US domestic industry criteria. This preliminary ruling is not the final result, and still needs to be reviewed by the ITC Commission, with room for adjustment and appeal in the follow-up.

Event background: Cross-border patent game triggered by lithium battery key materials

PVDF is a core new chemical material for lithium battery cathode binders and separator coatings, and it is an indispensable high-end fluorochemical product in the new energy industry chain. With the rapid expansion of the global lithium battery industry, the demand for battery-grade PVDF has continued to surge. As the founding enterprise of global PVDF technology and the holder of core patents, Syensqo has formed direct competition with the rapidly rising Chinese fluorochemical enterprises in the North American market. This 337 investigation is a typical case of intellectual property competition in the global high-end fluorochemical field.

The so-called US 337 investigation is a trade investigation conducted by the ITC in accordance with the US Tariff Act, mainly used to investigate unfair trade practices such as patent infringement of imported and exported products, and the ruling can directly restrict the entry of involved products into the US market.

Clear involved entities, one enterprise has settled and exited

This preliminary ruling involves four domestic leading fluorochemical and new material enterprises, namely Zhejiang Funolin, Hubei Funolin, Sinochem BlueSky and Juhua Co., Ltd..

In April 2025, the co-defendant Sanaifu Marriott reached a settlement with Syensqo, and the ITC has terminated the investigation against it, making it the only domestic enterprise that successfully exited the case.

Case timeline: Nearly two years of back-and-forth

In January 2025, Syensqo officially filed a 337 investigation application with the ITC, accusing 5 Chinese enterprises of infringing its core PVDF patents and applying for an import ban in the US market.

In February 2025, the ITC officially filed a case and launched the investigation.

In April 2025, Sanaifu Marriott settled and withdrew from the case.

In February 2026, the ITC overturned the previous ruling and restarted the infringement investigation against Juhua Co., Ltd.

On August 27, 2026, the administrative judge issued the latest preliminary ruling, finding that the four enterprises had established patent infringement.

Production capacity and industrial strength of domestic involved enterprises

Juhua Co., Ltd.: A leading domestic fluorochemical enterprise, with an existing PVDF production capacity of 32,000 tons, and an effectively operating capacity of 10,000 to 20,000 tons. Its products cover multiple fields such as coatings, photovoltaics, cables and lithium batteries, and it is simultaneously advancing a 30,000-ton technical transformation and expansion project.

Funolin enterprise group: The first domestic enterprise to realize the localization of suspension method PVDF. The two bases in Zhejiang and Hubei have a combined production capacity of 28,000 tons, and it is a core supplier of lithium battery PVDF in China.

Sinochem BlueSky: Has been deeply engaged in lithium battery PVDF for many years, with an existing lithium battery-grade PVDF production capacity of 22,500 tons, and its products focus on high-end new energy application fields.

Sanaifu Marriott: Has a PVDF production capacity of 18,000 tons, with customers covering leading new energy enterprises such as CATL, BYD and LONGi.

Domestic PVDF industrial pattern: Concentrated production capacity, accelerating domestic substitution

In addition to the involved enterprises, the high-quality production capacity of domestic battery-grade PVDF continues to expand, and the cluster effect of leading enterprises is significant. Among them, Getech has a production capacity of more than 30,000 tons, Dongyue Group 25,000 tons, Shandong Deyi and Jinchuan Group 20,000 tons each, and Yonghe Co., Ltd. 16,000 tons. Domestic PVDF has occupied the main position in the global new energy supply chain.

Overseas giants continue to expand production, global PVDF competition becomes white-hot

At present, the global high-end PVDF market has long been monopolized by three overseas enterprises: Syensqo, Arkema and Kureha.

Arkema continues to increase its global production capacity, expanding its North American base by 15% and its China Changshu base by 20%, consolidating its leading position in the industry.

Syensqo is fully laying out localized production capacity in North America to build the largest regional PVDF production base, and at the same time carrying out technical transformation and expansion in Changshu, China to 12,500 tons.

Kureha relies on the advantage of ultra-high-purity products to deeply cultivate the high-end lithium battery and semiconductor fields, and plans to increase its production capacity to 20,000 tons in 2026 and expand to 40,000 tons in 2030.

Industry impact analysis

The release of this preliminary ruling in the 337 investigation means that the export of domestic high-end fluorochemical and new energy materials is facing compliance and patent pressure. As China's PVDF production capacity and technology rapidly catch up with overseas traditional giants, patent barriers and international trade frictions in the field of high-end new chemical materials may continue to increase in the future. It has become an inevitable trend for domestic chemical enterprises to accelerate independent technology iteration, improve patent layout and avoid overseas trade risks.