Drought and rising consumption of water have prompted the government to consider building desalination plants in industrial zones.
The Water Resources Management Agency said yesterday several electronics manufacturers at the Hsinchu Science-based Industrial Park have expressed interest in investing in seawater desalination plants.
A drought earlier this year caused problems for the manu-facturers in the park and forced water rationing on consumers in the north of the country. The situation eased only after typhoons Rammasun and Nakri brought heavy rains.
A spokesman for the agency said yesterday that his organization had drafted plans for the plants to ameliorate the geographical limitations and unstable weather that made providing sufficient and stable water supplies difficult.
As water consumption by high-technology firms in the industrial zones in Hsinchu and Tainan has continued to increase over the past several years, it has become urgent for authorities to find solutions, according to the official.
He said that the agency's plans calls for a total investment of NT$2.433 billion in the plants near the Hsinchu park and another NT$2.904 billion in a similar project near the Tainan Science-based Industrial Park between 2004 and 2006.
The agency expects that these will be build-operate-transfer projects, the spokesman said.
To provide more incentives to private investors, the projects also accommodate recreational facilities and factories for sideline products, according to the spokesman.
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