ENERGY
CPC, Petronas ink gas deal
Oil supplier CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) said yesterday it had signed a six-year deal with Malaysian giant Petronas to import liquefied natural gas (LNG). Under the contract effective from next month, Petronas is to supply CPC with an average of 2.25 million tonnes of LNG each year, the Taiwanese company said in a statement. The contract replaces an existing 20-year deal that expires next year. A CPC senior executive also confirmed that it has been in talks with an international oil consortium to import shale gas for the first time from the US. Taiwan imports about 12.5 million tonnes of LNG from abroad each year, with Qatar and Indonesia also on top of its import list.
RETAIL
Cerberus eyes Safeway deal
Private-equity firm Cerberus Capital Management has offered to acquire US supermarket chain Safeway in a deal that would be worth more than US$9 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday. Cerberus has proposed paying about US$40 per share, but a potential deal has been complicated by a possible bid for Safeway by rival supermarket chain Kroger, the Journal said, citing unnamed sources. The acquisition would follow Cerberus’ purchase of the Albertsons supermarket chain last year. Cerberus declined to comment. Safeway last month announced that it was in discussions over a possible sale of the company, but that no deal was certain.
RETAIL
Target Corp IT boss quits
Target Corp’s chief information officer has resigned as the retailer overhauls its information security practices in the wake of a giant customer data breach, the company said on Wednesday. Beth Jacob, who was in charge of Target’s computer systems since 2008, has resigned, a company spokeswoman said, in the first major executive departure since the company announced the hacking incident in December last year. Target is to launch an external search for an interim chief information officer, as well as for a chief information security officer whose role will be “elevated” in the wake of the data breach, Target chief executive Gregg Steinhafel said in a statement. The company also plans to undertake an external search for a chief compliance officer.
ENERGY
Exxon to cut expenditure
Exxon Mobil Corp said it would cut capital spending by 6 percent this year, but still boost production of liquids such as oil by 2 percent. The biggest oil company in the US said on Wednesday that it would spend US$39.8 billion on energy projects and other costs this year, down from US$42.5 billion last year. Exxon said if it does not make acquisitions, annual spending would average less than US$37 billion from next year to 2017. The Irving, Texas-based company said production would rise 2 percent this year and 4 percent per year from next year through 2017. Exxon chief executive Rex Tillerson said that the company expects to start production at a record 10 major projects this year.
MEDIA
‘Newsweek’ back in print
Newsweek magazine, online only since the end of 2012, is to return to print starting today in the US and Europe. Parent company IBT Media is taking a gamble in relaunching the once-iconic news weekly, which nearly disappeared in the face of serious financial difficulties. The new magazine is seeking to position itself as a high-end product, in particular with higher quality paper and printing than its competitors.
purpose: Tesla’s CEO sought to meet senior Chinese officials to discuss the rollout of its ‘full self-driving’ software in China and approval to transfer data they had collected Tesla Inc CEO Elon Musk arrived in Beijing yesterday on an unannounced visit, where he is expected to meet senior officials to discuss the rollout of "full self-driving" (FSD) software and permission to transfer data overseas, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. Chinese state media reported that he met Premier Li Qiang (李強) in Beijing, during which Li told Musk that Tesla's development in China could be regarded as a successful example of US-China economic and trade cooperation. Musk confirmed his meeting with the premier yesterday with a post on social media platform X. "Honored to meet with Premier Li
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE: The chipmaker last month raised its capital spending by 28 percent for this year to NT$32 billion from a previous estimate of NT$25 billion Contract chipmaker Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp (力積電子) yesterday launched a new 12-inch fab, tapping into advanced chip-on-wafer-on-substrate (CoWoS) packaging technology to support rising demand for artificial intelligence (AI) devices. Powerchip is to offer interposers, one of three parts in CoWoS packaging technology, with shipments scheduled for the second half of this year, Powerchip chairman Frank Huang (黃崇仁) told reporters on the sidelines of a fab inauguration ceremony in the Tongluo Science Park (銅鑼科學園區) in Miaoli County yesterday. “We are working with customers to supply CoWoS-related business, utilizing part of this new fab’s capacity,” Huang said, adding that Powerchip intended to bridge
Dutch brewing company Heineken NV on Friday announced an investment of NT$13.5 billion (US$414.62 million) over the next five years in Taiwan. The first multinational brewing company to operate in Taiwan, Heineken made the statement at a ceremony held at its brewery in Pingtung County. It also outlined its efforts to make the brewery “net zero” by 2030. Heineken has been in the Taiwanese market for 20 years, Heineken Taiwan managing director Jeff Wu (吳建甫) said. With strong support from local consumers, the Dutch brewery decided to transition from sales to manufacturing in the country, Wu said. Heineken assumed majority ownership and management rights
Microsoft Corp yesterday said that it would create Thailand’s first data center region to boost cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, promising AI training to more than 100,000 people to develop tech. Bangkok is a key economic player in Southeast Asia, but it has lagged behind Indonesia and Singapore when it comes to the tech industry. Thailand has an “incredible opportunity to build a digital-first, AI-powered future,” Microsoft chairman and chief executive officer Satya Nadella said at an event in Bangkok. Data center regions are physical locations that store computing infrastructure, allowing secure and reliable access to cloud platforms. The global embrace of AI