Yu to push tech-protection bill

Premier Yu Shyi-kun pledged yesterday that the Cabinet and DPP will both do their best to push for passage of the proposed national technology protection law (國家科技保護法) during the next legislative session.

Yu's promise was an apparent response to vehement opposition from the TSU to the government's 8-inch wafer plant policy. His pledge came during a 40-minute meeting with six TSU lawmakers at the Executive Yuan yesterday.

The lawmakers visited Yu to voice their party's opposition to the government giving preliminary approval to the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co's (TSMC) US$898 million investment in an 8-inch wafer manufacturing plant in China.

They also called on the government to push the passage of the technology-protection bill, set specific standards for chipmakers wanting to transfer technology to China and investigate those who have already set up plants there.

Visibly unimpressed with Yu's response, however, the TSU lawmakers said that they do not rule out the possibility of trying to bar the premier from giving his report to the Legislative Yuan when it reconvenes on Feb. 27.

The lawmakers said they had asked Yu to specify the yield rate and economic mass production of 12-inch wafer fabrication plants before allowing local chipmakers to transfer their 8-inch wafer fabrication plants to China.

"We think a monthly production volume of at least 20,000 and a yield rate 70 percent would be ideal to keep these plants competitive," said Legislator Lo Chih-ming (羅志明).

TSMC's current monthly production volume is between 3,000 and 4,000.

The lawmakers asked Yu to investigate and punish chipmakers who set up wafer plants in China without government approval. He promised to carefully investigate such cases and mete out appropriate punishments in accordance with the law.

Yu also pledged to make good on promises he made to the TSU last March. During a meeting on March 28, Yu and TSU agreed on six guidelines to manage Taiwanese eight-inch wafer foundries set up in China -- following the principle of total quantitative control, matching investments, direct operation by Taiwanese companies, international standards of technology management, the retention of research and development in Taiwan and case-by-case review of investment applications.

Cabinet Spokesman Chuang Suo-hang (莊碩漢) told a press conference at the Executive Yuan after Yu's meeting with the lawmakers that the Cabinet will team up with the DPP to push the passage of the technology-protection bill during the next legislative session.

"It's the consensus of both the Cabinet and DPP to list the bill as a priority bill," Chuang said.

However, Chuang said the government will proceed cautiously in investigating chipmakers jumping the gun to set up wafer plants across the Taiwan Strait.

"The investigation process may take some time and we'd really hate to mistakenly punish someone based on insufficient evidence," Chuang said.

The proposed tech-protection law is designed to protect high-tech research conducted in Taiwan by regulating the transfer of high-tech skills overseas, particularly across the Taiwan Strait.

It has been held up in the legislature by a debate over just how strict its guidelines should as well by procedural technicalities.

Lawmakers across party lines, including in the DPP, have criticized the bill as lax and oversimplified.