Business conference bears fruit

"The efforts in soliciting foreign investment are not finished yet and the government will continue to work on them."

Shih Yen-shiang, vice minister of economic affairs

The government and private sector have landed 14 cooperation contracts with multinational companies, bringing the total confirmed foreign investment during the 2003 Taiwan Business Alliance Conference to NT$138.8 billion, a government official announced yesterday.

More than 2,000 foreign and local company representatives joined the four-day conference that started Sunday, far more than the 600 originally expected, said Vice Minister of Economic Affairs Shih Yen-shiang (施顏祥).

"We're satisfied with the results," Shih said.

But he said, "The efforts in soliciting foreign investment are not finished yet and the government will continue to work on them."

Six multinationals signed cooperation memorandums with the government and Taiwanese companies yesterday, following eight others which were inked on Monday.

Cooperation between South Korean and Taiwanese online games leaders was spotlighted yesterday, after the South Korean firm NC Soft announced a NT$140 million joint venture with Gamania Digital Entertainment Co Ltd (遊戲橘子), Taiwan's No.1 online game provider.

The two companies will create a new entity, NC Taiwan.

"NC Soft can develop products which are more suitable for the Chinese market, or the global market, through local operations," NC Soft chairman Jung Hwan-kim said in a statement.

Gamania brought NC Soft's Lineage online fantasy game to Taiwan in July 2000. The new venture, which will be 50-50 owned by the two parties, is expected to start beta testing of Lineages II in December.

Three foreign biotech companies -- Genovate Biotechnology Co, PharmaEssentia Corp and Ryss Lab Inc -- signed memorandums of understanding with local companies to develop new drugs yesterday.

Wireless application provider EMTAC Technology Corp (凱宣科技) signed a strategic partnership memorandum with Itochu Corp of Japan. Italian Morini Franco Motori Spa will form strategic ties with Taiwan Golden Bee Co (台灣金鋒) to manufacture scooters and engines.

The Ministry of Economic Affairs announced seven new investment projects during the conference, including the establishment of regional research and development centers here by Ericsson AB, Broadcom Corp, AKT and Telcordia Technologies. There will also be a mobile phone software development collaboration project between Access, a leading Japanese software provider, and the government's Institute for Information Industry.

On the retail side, Tesco Plc, the No.1 UK retailer, said yesterday that it planned to add up to six new outlets in the country within three years. The new investment is expected to increase the retailer's purchases from local suppliers and could create about 2,400 additional jobs.

In addition, US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc plans to spend NT$700 million to build a new four-store office complex in Tamsui. The new building is scheduled to be finished by March 2005, the ministry said.

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