In a hearing at the Taipei district court yesterday, the Eurotrain consortium -- which lost out to a Japanese group over the construction of Taiwan's high-speed railway line -- played tough to convince the court that the Taiwan High Speed Rail Corporation (THSRC) breached a binding agreement signed in 1997.
The EU group also wanted an injunction preventing the planned exchange of contracts with Japan's Shinkansen consortium.
At the same time, there was a high-profile meeting yesterday at the Taipei office of THSRC chairperson Nita Ing (
They expressed hopes the THSRC's final choice of partners would still be the European consortium.
Furious at being sidelined by the Taiwan-Shinkansen consortium of Japan, Eurotrain -- a joint venture of France's Alstom and Germany's Siemens AG -- has filed a request at the Taipei district court for a temporary injunction on ongoing negotiations between the THSRC and the Shinkansen, which began in mid-January this year.
The court set the hearing yesterday to clarify the legal relationships between THSRC and Eurotrain. Upon clarification it will determine whether the court will order the injunction.
Wang Chia-hui (
He said a decision was expected soon, as injunctions of this kind were often needed urgently.
Wang also said there was an obvious gap between the two parties' stories over their previous legal relationship.
If granted, the injunction is expected to block a deal worth over NT$90 billion between THSRC and the Japanese consortium.
But equally, if the petition is granted, then Eurotrain must also pay up to one third of the sum in dispute, as a deposit to ensure it will compensate THSRC for any damages it may suffer by the granting of the injunction.
Despite lengthy negotiations with Eurotrain, the THSRC awarded priority negotiating rights to the Japanese group on Dec. 28 last year.
Eurotrain, which has been vying for the high-speed rail project since 1997, has since protested to the THSRC over the switch and accused the company of breaking a 1997 agreement, which obliged THSRC to sign a contract with the European group if its price was considered reasonable.
However, THSRC, which was formally established as a consortium in May 1998, denied the 1997 agreement was binding as it was signed by Eurotrain and five main shareholders of the company, not the consortium itself.
Siemens AG chairman Heinrich von Pierer met with President Lee Teng-hui (
After a meeting with Minister of Transportation and Communication Lin Fong-cheng (
Ing, appearing little affected by the meeting, later said THSRC's final choice of the core system would be made on an evaluation based on business perspectives.
"THSRC is a private sector company and therefore the decision has to be made in the interests of its shareholders, as well as the public. Business is business," Ing said.
Meanwhile, THSRC announced yesterday it is to sign a contract with a consortium of local banks on Feb. 2 for a NT$323.3 billion syndicated loan.
The government is aiming to recruit 1,096 foreign English teachers and teaching assistants this year, the Ministry of Education said yesterday. The foreign teachers would work closely with elementary and junior-high instructors to create and teach courses, ministry official Tsai Yi-ching (蔡宜靜) said. Together, they would create an immersive language environment, helping to motivate students while enhancing the skills of local teachers, she said. The ministry has since 2021 been recruiting foreign teachers through the Taiwan Foreign English Teacher Program, which offers placement, salary, housing and other benefits to eligible foreign teachers. Two centers serving northern and southern Taiwan assist in recruiting and training
WIDE NET: Health officials said they are considering all possibilities, such as bongkrekic acid, while the city mayor said they have not ruled out the possibility of a malicious act of poisoning Two people who dined at a restaurant in Taipei’s Far Eastern Department Store Xinyi A13 last week have died, while four are in intensive care, the Taipei Department of Health said yesterday. All of the outlets of Malaysian vegetarian restaurant franchise Polam Kopitiam have been ordered to close pending an investigation after 11 people became ill due to suspected food poisoning, city officials told a news conference in Taipei. The first fatality, a 39-year-old man who ate at the restaurant on Friday last week, died of kidney failure two days later at the city’s Mackay Memorial Hospital. A 66-year-old man who dined
EYE ON STRAIT: The US spending bill ‘doubles security cooperation funding for Taiwan,’ while also seeking to counter the influence of China US President Joe Biden on Saturday signed into law a US$1.2 trillion spending package that includes US$300 million in foreign military financing to Taiwan, as well as funding for Taipei-Washington cooperative projects. The US Congress early on Saturday overwhelmingly passed the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act 2024 to avoid a partial shutdown and fund the government through September for a fiscal year that began six months ago. Under the package, the Defense Appropriations Act would provide a US$27 billion increase from the previous fiscal year to fund “critical national defense efforts, including countering the PRC [People’s Republic of China],” according to a summary
‘CARRIER KILLERS’: The Tuo Chiang-class corvettes’ stealth capability means they have a radar cross-section as small as the size of a fishing boat, an analyst said President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday presided over a ceremony at Yilan County’s Suao Harbor (蘇澳港), where the navy took delivery of two indigenous Tuo Chiang-class corvettes. The corvettes, An Chiang (安江) and Wan Chiang (萬江), along with the introduction of the coast guard’s third and fourth 4,000-tonne cutters earlier this month, are a testament to Taiwan’s shipbuilding capability and signify the nation’s resolve to defend democracy and freedom, Tsai said. The vessels are also the last two of six Tuo Chiang-class corvettes ordered from Lungteh Shipbuilding Co (龍德造船) by the navy, Tsai said. The first Tuo Chiang-class vessel delivered was Ta Chiang (塔江)