Thanks to the government's efforts to promote renewable energy, the installation density of solar water heaters in Taiwan is now the third-highest in the world, Vice Economics Minister Hou Ho-shong (侯和雄) said yesterday.
Addressing a seminar held by the Chunghua Institution for Economic Research on the impact of soaring oil prices on the economy, Hou pointed out that the government is trying to work out plans for energy conservation and the enhancement of energy efficiency to cope with high oil prices.
These include a plan to amend the Energy Management Law (能源管理法) to regulate energy efficiency and to enact a renewable energy development law with the goal of seeing renewable energy generation reach 5,130 megawatts, or 10 percent of the total capacity generated by the country's power stations, by 2010, Hou said.
Hou noted that the government is promoting the use of various renewable energy sources, including wind, solar, solar thermal, biomass energy and geothermal energy.
The government is also planning to set up a solar-heated indoor swimming pool this year, Hou said.
The government has subsidized the installation of 74 solar power systems with a total generation capacity of 647 kilowatts, including one at the Presidential Office, and is carrying out a "solar-powered city" project in Tainan County, according to Hou.
Also, the government is expected to complete the country's first geothermal power plant in Ilan County in 2007, he said.
Meanwhile, Hou said, the government is planning to replace all the traffic lights around the country with energy-conserving light emitting diodes next year.
With international oil prices rising to as high as US$70 per barrel in August and fluctuating around US$57 per barrel at present, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Ministry of Finance have suggested that the Cabinet lower the taxes on gasoline, diesel and fuel oil by 25 percent until Dec. 31 in an effort to stabilize domestic consumer prices, he said.
SEMICONDUCTORS: The German laser and plasma generator company will expand its local services as its specialized offerings support Taiwan’s semiconductor industries Trumpf SE + Co KG, a global leader in supplying laser technology and plasma generators used in chip production, is expanding its investments in Taiwan in an effort to deeply integrate into the global semiconductor supply chain in the pursuit of growth. The company, headquartered in Ditzingen, Germany, has invested significantly in a newly inaugurated regional technical center for plasma generators in Taoyuan, its latest expansion in Taiwan after being engaged in various industries for more than 25 years. The center, the first of its kind Trumpf built outside Germany, aims to serve customers from Taiwan, Japan, Southeast Asia and South Korea,
Gasoline and diesel prices at domestic fuel stations are to fall NT$0.2 per liter this week, down for a second consecutive week, CPC Corp, Taiwan (台灣中油) and Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) announced yesterday. Effective today, gasoline prices at CPC and Formosa stations are to drop to NT$26.4, NT$27.9 and NT$29.9 per liter for 92, 95 and 98-octane unleaded gasoline respectively, the companies said in separate statements. The price of premium diesel is to fall to NT$24.8 per liter at CPC stations and NT$24.6 at Formosa pumps, they said. The price adjustments came even as international crude oil prices rose last week, as traders
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), which supplies advanced chips to Nvidia Corp and Apple Inc, yesterday reported NT$1.046 trillion (US$33.1 billion) in revenue for last quarter, driven by constantly strong demand for artificial intelligence (AI) chips, falling in the upper end of its forecast. Based on TSMC’s financial guidance, revenue would expand about 22 percent sequentially to the range from US$32.2 billion to US$33.4 billion during the final quarter of 2024, it told investors in October last year. Last year in total, revenue jumped 31.61 percent to NT$3.81 trillion, compared with NT$2.89 trillion generated in the year before, according to
PRECEDENTED TIMES: In news that surely does not shock, AI and tech exports drove a banner for exports last year as Taiwan’s economic growth experienced a flood tide Taiwan’s exports delivered a blockbuster finish to last year with last month’s shipments rising at the second-highest pace on record as demand for artificial intelligence (AI) hardware and advanced computing remained strong, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. Exports surged 43.4 percent from a year earlier to US$62.48 billion last month, extending growth to 26 consecutive months. Imports climbed 14.9 percent to US$43.04 billion, the second-highest monthly level historically, resulting in a trade surplus of US$19.43 billion — more than double that of the year before. Department of Statistics Director-General Beatrice Tsai (蔡美娜) described the performance as “surprisingly outstanding,” forecasting export growth
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