LONG-TERM PLANS: The wind power industry needs a stable framework as the Danish firm plans to operate in Taiwan for at least 25 years, its president for Asia-Pacific said

Taipei Times
Date: May 03, 2019
By: Natasha Li  /  Staff reporter

Orsted A/S yesterday said it plans to establish a NT$60 million (US$1.94 million) trust

fund in Taiwan, in partnership with other wind power developers, to provide local suppliers with further training and qualifications, after the Danish firm’s board made its final investment decision on Tuesday.

The trust fund would be operated by a third party, such as the Metal Industries Research and Development Center (金工中心), while the firm would also create a platform where smaller suppliers would be encouraged to engage in the local supply chain, Orsted president for Asia-Pacific Matthias Bausenwein told a news conference in Taipei.

The company said that it would further cooperate with local companies in the areas of power facilities and maritime engineering through various projects involving onshore substations, power transmission systems, maritime engineering counseling, environmental monitoring and energy storage systems.

The news came as a relief for many, as Orsted had earlier announced that it would suspend activities in Taiwan due to local supply chain complications and the Ministry of Economic Affairs’ decision to lower a feed-in tariff to NT$5.516 per kilowatt-hour.
[FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2019/05/02
By: Christie Chen

Taipei, May 2 (CNA) Taiwan shares closed up 36.76 points, or 0.34 percent, at 11,004.49 Thursday on turnover of NT$101.17 billion (US$3.27 billion).     [SOURCE]

British pilots train in Texas with USAF

Taiwan News
Date: 2019/05/02
By: Matthew Strong, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Following the example of the United States Air Force (USAF), Great Britain’s Royal Air Force (RAF) is using HTC’s Vive Pro Virtual Reality and Artificial Intelligence system to train new pilots, the Taiwanese company said Thursday (May 2).

Two British pilots reportedly traveled to Austin, Texas, to become the first non-American students enrolled in the USAF “Pilot Training Next” program, the United Daily News reported.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2019/05/02
By: Pan Tzu-yu and Flor Wang

Taipei, May 2 (CNA) Taiwan’s manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) and non-

manufacturing index (NMI) both moved above 50 for April, driven by improved business sentiment among local manufacturers in the month, the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER) reported Thursday.

After seasonal adjustments, the April PMI rose by 2.6 to reach 51.7 last month — the first time the index has moved above 50 in six months, thanks to reduced trade friction between the United States and China.

CIER President Chen Shi-kuan (陳思寬) said local manufacturers were “cautiously optimistic” about the future business climate, with their concerns about the U.S.-China trade war and uncertainties over China’s economy subsiding.

According to Chen, local manufacturers expect operations to return to normal in the second quarter of 2019 and orders to bounce back accordingly.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2019/05/02
By: Chiang Chin-yeh and Evelyn Kao

Washington, May 1 (CNA) Terry Gou (郭台銘), chairman of Hon Hai Precision Industry

Co., reaffirmed the company’s commitment to a US$10 billion investment project in Wisconsin during a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House Wednesday.

The Taiwanese tech giant’s investment project was a key point of discussion during the one-hour meeting.

Gou said that he detailed the progress of the Wisconsin project and assured Trump the company’s plans to invest US$10 billion to build a manufacturing plant in the state remain unchanged.

However, Gou added that he is set to make a career change and hand over day to day running of the company, so the current trip is to clarify future company operations.

Gou has declared his intention to run in Taiwan’s 2020 presidential election by participating in the opposition Kuomintang’s primary to select its candidate.
[FULL  STORY]

A final court decision rejects the Farglory Group’s appeal against the suspension order

Taiwan News
Date: 2019/05/01
By: Iris Hsu, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – The Supreme Administrative Court ruled Tuesday (April 30) that the city government’s decision to halt Taipei Dome’s construction was legal, rejecting Farglory Group’s appeal over the legality of the suspension order.

Farglory Group spokesman Yang Shun-chin (楊舜欽) told the media that the court decision came as a disappointment. Yang said Taipei city’s Department of Urban Development’s suspension order in fact caused more security concerns and harmed public safety.

In May 2015, the Taipei City Government ordered Farglory to suspend construction work on the 40,000-seat Taipei Dome, accusing the developer of not following through the original design, which Farglory submitted for its building permit.

Farglory claimed such order violated the proportionality principle and filed an appeal. The Taipei High Administrative Court ruled that the developer violated the laws but the city government’s suspension order also violated the proportionality principle. Both parties appealed.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2019/05/01
By: Jeffrey Wu and Frances Huang 

Taipei, May 1 (CNA) Taiwan-based smartphone brand HTC Corp., which entered the global virtual reality market by unveiling its first VR headset — the Vive — in 2015, will hold a Vive VR developer conference in Taiwan on May 3.

In a statement released on Wednesday, HTC said developers at the conference, which will be held at digiBlock Taipei, will share their efforts at developing VR applications and the commercialization of those efforts.

Through the HTC Vive Sense SDK (software development kit), HTC said, participants are expected to develop a better understanding of how to apply the latest VR technologies, such as eye-tracking and hand gesture recognition, to VR solutions.

In addition, HTC said the developer conference will allow attendees to experience the company’s latest VR technologies and 5G streaming applications so new developers and students can exchange views, thereby deepening their knowledge in the field.
[FULL  STORY]