China Steel (
The move is the latest in a wave of local companies from traditional industries that have diversified into the biotech industry.
"High-tech industries, including the electronic and biotech industries, will be the main areas of diversification for China Steel in the future," said C.Y. Wang (
At present, Wang said, non-steel business accounts for 25 percent of the company's total sales. By next year or 2001, that figure may rise to 30 percent, with the increase expected to come entirely from high-tech products.
But with scant knowledge or experience in the biotech field, China Steel's investment serves as an entry into the market. According to Wang, the move represents a good opportunity to learn about the biotech industry and to develop contacts with biotech experts.
The Sino Canada Biotechnology Fund will target foreign biotech firms, said Tsao Chien-ming (
Other major investors in the fund include the Executive Yuan's Development Fund (|甈F院開發基金) with C$16 million to C$18 million, Taiwan Fertilizer (台肥) with C$10 million and Teco Electric & Machinery Co (東??q機). The fund will be managed by MDS Capital Corp of Canada.
MDS Capital Corp will also help to introduce 10 different biotech processes or discoveries into Taiwan within five years and train Taiwanese to assess the viability of biotech projects.
"This is our launch pad into the biotech industry," Tsao said. "We will get a lot of information from the report of the fund manager."
And this is just the start. With its growing interest in the biotech industry, China Steel is currently assessing the possibility of investing in other biotech projects, Tsao said.
Meanwhile, many other local private companies, including Uni-President (2?@), Koo's Group (和信), Taiwan Fertilizer (台肥) and Tuntex Group (東帝?h) have also rushed into the life science industries. Life science includes the pharmaceutical, biotech and healthcare industries.
Encouraged by the government, state-run firms, including Taiwan Sugar (
The move into the industry is not surprising, according to Howard Lee (
Many local companies from the so-called "traditional industries" have sought diversification into the life science area because it is a better choice than other high-tech areas such as the semiconductor or Internet business, he said.
"The semiconductor industry is very capital intensive. In addition, it is a little late to get into that industry now as there are many well-established firms in that field already. On the other hand, biotech is a very young industry, even in the most advanced countries such as the US," Lee said.
According to Lee, just 10,000 of the roughly 30,000 diseases worldwide have remedies, leaving plenty of room for industry growth.
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