(Yicai) Aug. 4 -- Police have detained an executive from Hithium Energy Storage Technology for investigation, as the patent dispute between the Chinese energy storage giant and its biggest rival Contemporary Amperex Technology rages.

Feng Dengke, who was once the deputy general manager and director of the president’s office at Hithium, was taken away by police in Ningde for investigation after CATL reported him for suspected infringement of business secrets, Yicai learned from a person close to CATL. Police have already collected related evidence, the source added.

Hithium confirmed Feng’s detention to Yicai, noting that he is no longer working at the company’s headquarters, as he is now the general manager of its subsidiary Hithium Green Energy Development, responsible for business development, so he is no longer involved in the technology research and development process.

Wu Zuyu, who was once the backbone of CATL’s technical team, founded Hithium in 2019, the year after he left the Ningde-based company. Hithium applied for an initial public offering on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in March.

The dispute between the firms began in 2023, when CATL sued Wu for violating a non-compete agreement. He was ruled to pay CATL CNY1 million (USD139,300) in compensation.

In June, CATL took Hithium to court again on the grounds of unfair competition, claiming more than CNY100 million (USD13.9 million). The case will go to trial on Aug. 12.

CATL is the world’s largest provider of energy storage and electric vehicle batteries. In recent years, it has been engaged in patent disputes with many competitors, including Tafel New Energy Technology, Calb Group, and Svolt Energy Technology.

Hithium’s energy storage battery shipments reached 35.1 gigawatt-hours last year, ranking third globally, with a market share of 11 percent, according to the company’s listing prospectus. Chinese peers CATL and Eve Energy ranked first and second, respectively.

Last year, Hithium achieved a net profit of CNY287.6 million, reversing a net loss of CNY2 billion (USD278.6 million) the year before. Revenue rose 27 percent to CNY12.9 billion (USD1.8 billion) in the period.

Editors: Dou Shicong, Futura Costaglione