The Council for Economic Planning and Development (CEPD) yesterday said it plans to allow insurance companies to invest in logistics centers in the nation’s “free economic pilot zones.”
The commission said it also proposes to let insurers to have up to a 35 percent stake in major projects within the pilot zones, higher than the 10 percent stake they can have in other investments under current regulations, Council for Economic Planning and Development Minister Kuan Chung-ming (管中閔) said.
“In this way, we can attract more investment into the zones,” Kuan said, adding that Taiwan still lacks modern logistics centers.
The Cabinet formally announced the establishment of the pilot zones in August, but it has only attracted seven companies thus far to invest NT$600 million (US$20.39 million) in the zones as of the middle of this month, the council said.
That is because most companies are still waiting for more details of the zones before making their decisions, Kuan said.
Kuan said he had discussed with the Financial Supervisory Commission about the initiatives, with the commission now reviewing whether they are feasible.
Meanwhile, the council also aims to expand the zones by including land owned by the government that has not been utilized, such as Changhua Coastal Industrial Park (彰濱工業區).
Kuan said the council has examined local science parks and industrial zones and it will draw up a detailed plan and report a detailed plan to the Cabinet within a week.
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