Japanese company's expansion said to catch up to demand from Taiwanese companies on 5G optimism

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/08/18
By: Sophia Yang, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Thanks to strong growth momentum in Taiwan's semiconductor foundry sector, Japan's largest chemical corporation is said to be set to build a new plant in the island country to boost the supply of wafer cleaning solutions.

The new plant, which is said to be planned for Taiwan's high-tech hub Hsinchu, will boost capacity by 50 percent to catch up to demand from Taiwanese companies on 5G optimism, including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), its big buyer in Taiwan, media reported.

The Japanese-language Nikkei reported on Monday (Aug. 17) that Mitsubishi Chemical's new facility in Hsinchu is going into production in 2021, and it will be manufacturing high-performance specialty chemical solutions needed for removing contamination during wafer processing.

Previously, Mitsubishi Chemical invested 5 billion yen (about US$47 million) to build a plant in Kaohsiung to produce a tape for semiconductor manufacturing. The plant may start operations in January 2021.    [FULL  STORY]

‘NO GOOD TARGETS’: Company president Magi Chen said that it would keep looking for suitable targets, but is conservative after interest rates were cut globally

Taipei Times
Date: Aug 19, 2020
By: Kao Shih-ching / Staff reporter

E.Sun Financial Holding Co (玉山金控) yesterday said that it would evaluate whether to acquire an insurance company given the challenge of making a profit in a low-interest rate environment and the implementation of new international accounting standards by 2026.

The company has not found good targets to acquire, although local peer Taishin Financial Holding Co (台新金控) last week won a bid for Prudential Life Insurance Co of Taiwan (保德信人壽) for NT$5.5 billion (US$186.33 million).

“The company will keep looking for [suitable targets] … but we are conservative, as it is challenging to run a life insurance business after a series of rate cuts around the world,” E.Sun Financial president Magi Chen (陳美滿) told an investors’ conference in Taipei.

Meanwhile, companies with insurance units would be under more pressure financially after International Financial Reporting Standard 17 takes effect, as the new accounting rules have tighter requirements regarding insurers’ capital adequacy, Chen said.    [FULL  STORY]

New ban extends to semiconductors and components based on American technology

Nikkei Asian Review
Date: August 18, 2020
By: CHENG TING-FANG and LAULY LI, Nikkei staff writers

TAIPEI — Huawei Technologies was the subject of an unprecedented crackdown by the U.S. government on Monday, as Washington further limits the Chinese tech giant's ability to buy standardized chips and other electronic components from non-American suppliers.

The latest rule — which would choke Huawei's supply chain continuity — forbids Huawei from obtaining foreign-made chips either developed or produced from American software or technology, a U.S. Commerce Department announcement said.

The rule, which takes effect immediately, could further restrict key non-American Huawei suppliers from selling crucial semiconductors to China's biggest tech company.

Mobile chip developer MediaTek, image sensor provider Sony, sensor supplier STMicroelectronics, as well as key memory chipmakers Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix, Kioxia, Nanya Tech and many Asian, European and domestic Chinese chip developers may all have to abide by the rules if their chip development involves U.S. software and technologies, legal experts and market watchers said.    [FULL  STORY]

Gogoro currently has 1,793 battery swapping stations around country

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/08/17
By: Eric Chang, Taiwan News, Contributing Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — As domestic demand for electric scooters continues to rise, Gogoro says it plans to have over 1,900 battery swapping stations in its Gogoro Network throughout Taiwan by the end of 2020.

According to Inside, the electric scooter maker currently has 1,793 charging stations in Taiwan, including the six major metropolitan areas. The company recently won a bid from Taiwan’s state-owned petrochemical company — CPC Corporation (台灣中油) — to install 110 more battery swaps at CPC gas stations around the country.

This will bring the number of GoStations — Gogoro’s name for its charging platforms — at CPC petrol stations to over 348, making CPC Gogoro’s largest partner in terms of battery exchange stations. Gogoro Network General Manager Pan Jing-lun (潘璟倫) thanked CPC for its long-term promotion of the service.

Pan also pointed out CPC was the first company to partner up with Gogoro to install charging stations. CPC set up its first GoStation at its Yongqi Taishan (永錡泰山) gas station in New Taipei City in May 2015.   [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 08/17/2020
By: Y.F. Low

Taipei, Aug. 17 (CNA) The U.S. dollar fell against the Taiwan dollar Monday, shedding NT$0.016 to close at NT$29.526.

Turnover totaled US$693 million during the trading session.

The greenback opened at the day's high of NT$29.540, and moved to a low of NT$29.382 before rebounding.    [SOURCE]

STRIKING WHILE HOT: The Kaohsiung fab, which is to create 2,800 jobs, is part of a greater project to build six fabs in Taiwan in five years, the company said

Taipei Times
Date: Aug 18, 2020
By: Lisa Wang / Staff reporter

ASE Technology Holding Co (ASE, 日月光投控), the world’s biggest chip tester and packager, yesterday said it would invest NT$26 billion (US$880.58 million) in a new fab in Kaohsiung to expand advanced testing and packaging capacity for 5G-related chips.

The new fab, code-named K13, is part of the company’s broader plan to build six fabs in Taiwan within five years, ASE said.

As rapidly developing 5G technology is stimulating demand for semiconductors, ASE said it is stepping up investment and adding advanced technology capacity to capture the “explosive” growth of the supply chain.0

“5G is a new technology, which is to bring explosive growth to businesses. ASE would continue to invest in advanced process technologies and hire research and development experts in Kaohsiung to capitalize on this opportunity for the semiconductor industry,” ASE chief executive officer Tien Wu (吳田玉) said in a statement.    [FULL  STORY]

Special flight open to company employees, relatives, hovers over Taiwan's famous geographical locations

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/08/16
By: George Liao, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Starlux Airlines Chairman Chang Kuo-wei (張國煒) on Sunday took the company’s employees and fans for a four-hour pleasure flight to Taiwan’s northern and southernmost points with him at the controls.

The special pleasure flight was a gift the company offered to its employees and their relatives, in addition to 40 fans of the airline. The flight essentially followed the same route as the commercial pleasure cruise that took place on Aug. 7, with the exception of a flyover of the Diaoyu Islands, according to a CNA report.

Due to the limited number of passengers, 40 fans were selected from a draw conducted by the airline on Facebook, and the employees were drawn from those who had signed up for the flight.

The special flight, which used an A321neo jet, took off at 11 a.m. from Taoyuan International Airport and landed at 2:40 p.m. The plane flew over the Diaoyu Islands, then along eastern Taiwan’s coastline, passing Turtle Island, Dongao Bay, Qingshui Cliff, East Rift Valley, Hengchun Peninsula, and the Dongsha Islands (東沙群島, Pratas Islands), where the plane turned back and flew the same route back to Taoyuan, according to Chang; when the plane hovered over Taitung, passengers were able to see Green Island and Orchid Island, the captain added.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 08/16/2020
By: Pan Chih-yi, Wu Che-hao and Evelyn Kao

Taipei, Aug. 16 (CNA) The first phase of a project to build an offshore wind power operation and maintenance base in Changhua, central Taiwan under Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) is set to be accomplished by 2021, CIP said Saturday.

The Danish green energy developer aims to build the base into the first professional offshore and energy (O&E) port for offshore wind farms in the Asia-Pacific, the company said in a statement.

The first phase of the development project covers a total area of 35 hectares, including 16.86 hectares of land for the Changhua fishing port, which is near the planned O&E center, 3.14 hectares for road construction and 15 hectares for industrial use, CIP added.

CIP said it first expressed interest in building the O&E base in 2017 and has invested over NT$2 billion (US$67.796 million) to develop the port in the Changhua coastal area and a nearby O&E center for the 589MW Changfang and Xidao offshore wind farms.    [FULL  STORY]