Bondholder files lawsuit against Yingli’s subsidiary

Yingli has been struggling for a long time to find an agreement on the outstanding repayments with the holders of the 2010 and 2011 medium-term notes. The Chinese PV manufacturer was unable to make repayments of the notes due May 12, 2016, and of those due October 13, 2015, within the given time limits.

Now, one of the bond holders has filed a lawsuit against the company’s subsidiary Tianwei Yingli at a Chinese court, the company announced on Friday. According to Yingli, the amount of the holder’s notes represents about 3.7%, or some 65.7 million yuan (€8.4 million), of the total outstanding amount of the 2010 and 2011 medium-term notes.

So far, Yingli had tried to settle the dispute with the creditor out of court. However, the bondholder recently informed the company that he wanted to enforce his claims at court. He asked Tianwei Yingli to pay 74.4 million yuan. This also includes interest and an overdue penalty, as well as costs related to the lawsuit. The Chinese solar manufacturer said it will vigorously defend its rights in court and at the same time look for a favorable out-of-court solution.

In view of the creditor's claim, Yingli does not expect any direct impact on the company's overall operation. At the same time, the company announced its intention to discuss the restructuring of the debt, strategic alternatives and financial plans in the near future with the bond creditors. However, a specific date was not mentioned.