Biotechs could see rapid growth

The government is banking on the success of the local biotechnology industry. Last May, President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) pledged NT$52 billion over five years to the local biotechnology industry. That translates to around NT$10 billion each year which is being funneled into research and development and training, Lee said yesterday.

But making money out of biotechnology may be a gamble.

"Sadly the investments so far have not been generating as much income as we had expected," Huang said. But Lin was much more upbeat.

"So far biotechnology companies are performing well compared with international standards. We are seeing pretty good results and are satisfied," he said.