■ EVA to buy Boeings
EVA Airways Corp (長榮) said Tuesday it has agreed to buy eight Boeing 777-300ER aircraft for US$1.49 billion in a bid to expand its capacity. EVA and the US aircraft manufacturer agreed in June 2000 on the procurement of 15 B777-200LR and B777-300ER passenger jets, including a firm order for seven and an option for eight, EVA said in a statement. The latest represented confirmation of that option, the carrier said. EVA did not say when the eight aircraft would be delivered, but added that more details would be announced at a joint press conference with Boeing on Friday this week. Separately, EVA Airways concluded a lease-after-sale deal with GECAS Aircraft Leasing Netherlands BV on three previously acquired B777-300ER aircraft for US$560.31 million. EVA also concluded a similar deal with GECAS on three other Boeing 747-400 passenger jets for US$205 million and three 747-400 combo jets for US$177 million, it said.
■ Diana Chen to be replaced
China Development Financial Holding Corp (中華開發金控) will decide on a replacement for chairwoman Diana Chen (陳敏薰) at a board meeting on April 20, a China Development official said. Chen was ousted after representatives of the Koos family, the nation's fourth-richest, and the government took control of the board last week. The 21-member board will elect seven senior executive directors, who will then vote on a chairman or chairwoman, China Development spokeswoman Grace Fang (方鳳山) said. Chen Mu-tsai (陳木在), chairman of state-owned Bank of Taiwan (台灣銀行), was nominated to replace Chen, while Koos-controlled KGI Securities Co (中信證券).
■ Southern Taiwan gets hub
The Council for Economic Planning and Development (CEPD) will earmark NT$200 million (about US$6.1 million) this year for the establishment of an innovation and research and development hub in southern Taiwan, according to a council spokesman. The decision was made during a meeting Monday in which officials got together to study the effects of the "Challenge 2008, " a six-year national development plan and set new objectives. Citing council Vice Chairwoman Ho Mei-yueh (何美玥), the spokesman said that the innovation and R&D center planned for the south will be located inside the Southern Tainan Science-based Industrial Park. The major purpose of the innovation and R&D hub in southern Taiwan is to attract companies from the private sector to open shop and train 1,000 high-tech researchers, the spokesman quoted Ho as saying. The government-funded Industrial Technology Research Institute will take the initiative to set up a foothold there. The council's innovation and R&D hub plan has successfully courted 21 multinationals and 66 domestic concerns to set up their research centers in Taiwan.
■ Taipower to help chipmakers
Taiwan Power Co (Taipower, 台電) will spend NT$7.7 billion (US$234 million) this year to improve supplies to chipmakers and other companies, a Chinese-language newspaper said, citing unidentified officials from the utility. Taipower yesterday met representatives of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電), United Microelectronics Corp (聯電) and other chipmakers that were among eight companies which lost more than NT$1 billion worth of production on Saturday after power was cut for about an hour, the paper said.
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