GE Must Face Siemens Patent Claims Over Offshore Wind Turbines

Offshore wind turbines attached to the ocean floor can infringe US patents, a Massachusetts federal judge ruled, setting up a trial on alleged infringement by General Electric Co. involving turbines it’s planned for wind farms.

Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy A/S alleges GE’s Haliade-X wind turbines infringe two of its patents. GE argued it isn’t liable for infringement because no assembled turbines enter the US—parts are made abroad and the turbines will be installed miles offshore.

The central issue was one few courts have addressed: whether US patent law applies to inventions attached to the outer continental shelf, an area that ...