Nanotech sector may soon generate massive returns

The production value of Taiwan's nanotechnology industry will hit NT$500 billion (US$14.45 billion) by the year 2012, according to a government report published yesterday.

"That figure includes the IC [integrated circuit] industry, but it is a conservative estimate nonetheless. It will be more than that," said Lin Chih-hua (林治華), analyst at the Industrial Technology Information Service (產業資訊服務網), run by the Department of Industry Technology under the Ministry of Economic Affairs.

The government has set aside NT$23.17 billion (US$669.6 million) over the next six years to fund projects ranging from developing new semiconductor manufacturing processes to stronger, more pliable plastics through the use of nanotechnology.

Nanotechnology is the science of creating and improving materials, devices and systems by manipulating matter at the microscopic level. It is believed, for example, that steel can be made far stronger than it is today by modifying its structure at the nanometric level.

Much of the monetary value tied to nanotechnology comes from the science being applied to existing industries, Lin said.

Not including Taiwan's powerful chip industry, production value is still projected to hit NT$300 billion (US$8.67 billion) by 2008, according to the Industrial Development Bureau.

"The impact [of nanotechnology] will be felt in traditional industries first," said Tsai Ping-ping (蔡嬪嬪), a program officer at the NanoTechnology Research Center in the government-funded Industrial Technology Research Institute (工研院) in Hsinchu.

Some of the most promising areas in Taiwan include plastics and other materials such as polymers, ultrafine powders, pigments, inks and dyes, the paper industry, fiber, fabrics, ceramic material and more, Tsai said.

Within the next five years, she projected the nation's manufacturers will be churning out new kinds of computer displays, information storage devices and other gear made through the use of nanotechnology. In 10 years, Taiwan could be making a host of nano-devices and molecular electronics products.

"In some ways, nanotechnology is already around us, but it is not visible. But as far as the revolutionary devices are concerned ... there are no commercial products at this moment," Lin said.

Although the government plans to invest heavily in nanotechnology, its NT$23.17 billion budget falls far short of competitors in the region.

China is planning to spend NT$105.7 billion (US$3 billion) by 2005, while South Korea has budgeted NT$54.28 billion (US$1.56 billion) for this year alone.