A new industrial zone dedicated to the liquid-crystal display (LCD) television industry will increase the annual production value of the sector by NT$200 billion (US$6.34 billion), the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday.
The industrial zone, which broke ground yesterday in the Southern Taiwan Science Park (南部科學園區), covers 247 hectares with a development budget of NT$14 billion and will be opened to manufacturers by the end of May.
The ministry's Industrial Development Bureau noted that the nation produced around 1.8 million LCD units last year and that the annual production value is expected to increase by more than NT$200 billion after the establishment of the industrial zone, creating 30,000 jobs.
Bureau officials said that 1.95 million digital TV (DTV) and LCD TVs were produced last year with a production value of around US$54.4 billion, up 320 percent and 212 percent respectively, from the previous year.
It is expected that the number of DTVs and LCD TVs will reach 3.6 million units with a production value of US$83.2 billion this year.
The officials said the production value of the flat-panel display industry showed remarkable growth last year, reaching NT$715 billion. But as 90 percent of the investment on equipment has to rely on imports, many manufacturers have to delay their next-generation plant expansion projects when the price for flat-panel displays is down.
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