Park sees booming future

Next year will be an action year for the Southern Taiwan Science Park (STSP, 南部科學園區) when new biotechnology and medical technology zones begin to be developed, fueling a "cluster effect" that might help usher in a new wave of the "Taiwan miracle," a park administrator said Friday.

When the biotechnology and medical technology zones are fully developed -- to be located in the Kaohsiung area of the STSP, which encompasses a huge area straddling Tainan and Kaohsiung Counties -- they are expected to form a cluster of biotechnology industries, said Tai Chien (戴謙), director general of Southern Taiwan Science Park Administration.

The STSP is promising to become the locomotive of industrial development in the south, based on the solid foundation laid by first-generation high-technology manufacturing companies, including TFT-LCD and semiconductor manufacturers, with the addition of the new biotechnology industrial complexes and the expanding Kaohsiung telecommunications industrial park nearby, Tai added.

He noted that since the southern science park began in 1998, its production has almost doubled annually, with the value reaching NT$259 billion (US$7.8 billion) last year and expected to top NT$300 billion (US$9.09 billion) for this year.