There have been reports that Zhejiang Jinko Co., Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of JinkoSolar in Haining, Zhejiang Province, China, discharged hazardous waste into a river, prompting local residents to protest at its facility from September 15 to September 17, 2011. The local environmental protection authority is investigating the incident. In response to the concerns of local residents and in full cooperation with the local governments investigation, Zhejiang Jinko has suspended operations at its facility in Haining until the impact of any potential environmental damage has been assessed and remedied. An initial investigation conducted by the local environmental protection authority indicates that the pollution may have been caused by the improper storage of waste containing fluoride.

The company will take all necessary steps to ensure that it is in compliance with all environmental rules and regulations. Any deficiencies in environmental protection uncovered will be immediately remedied. The company has sincerely apologized to local residents of Haining and its employees for any inconveniences caused.  

The companys facility in Haining had the capacity to produce 1,100 MW of solar cells per year as of June 30, 2011. The temporary suspension of operation in Haining will have no material impact on the business in its Shangrao facility, which mainly produces silicon ingots, silicon wafers and solar modules. To make up for the temporary wafer-to-cell processing shortfall, the company expects to outsource the cell processing to a third party vendor under a ‘tolling‘ arrangement. The halt in production is not expected to have material impact on the companys operations and module delivery commitment to its customers. The company will update the market as the situation evolves.