The Changhua County government yesterday confirmed that Formosa Plastics Group (
"We are delighted about the proposed project, as it will bring more money and jobs to the county," Lai Chih-fu (賴致富), director of the county government's press room, said yesterday.
Lai said that Changhua County Commissioner Wong Chin-chu (
A county government press release had said that it wanted a coal-fired power plant, steel refinery or related industries to invest in the zone, lending weight to speculation that Formosa Plastics has taken up the county government's offer and intends to set up a steelmaking factory.
Formosa Plastics, a petrochemical giant, has been searching for a site to build its steel refinery since 1995. It was reportedly looking at sites in North Korea and China's Qingdao Province, Fujian Province and Zhejiang Province.
A local Chinese-language newspaper reported last week that Formosa Plastics may build a NT$100 billion (US$3 billion) steel plant in China to tap demand in the world's largest market for the metal, citing Wang.
The report said the company was considering Mei Shan island, southeast of Shanghai, because restrictions on emissions of carbon dioxide would be easier to meet there.
Public relations officials at Formosa Plastics said they had no idea about the steel mill investment plans in either Changhua or China.
Chinese-language newspaper reports have suggested that Wang would establish a steelmaking factory in Changhua that is capable of producing 100 million tonnes of steel plates per year, as well as a downstream auto parts factory on the land and 4,000 hectares around it.
The project, however, is subject to the approval of the Ministry of Economic Affairs' Industrial Development Bureau, which, if it gives a green light, would allocate a development fund of NT$75 million to the plan, Lai said.
After approval, it would take the government and the company two years to conduct an environmental evaluation before the company can start construction work, said Lin Chih-wei (林智偉), an official at the county government's industry division.
Daphne Lee (李冠盈), administrator of investment relations at state-run China Steel Corp (中鋼), the nation's largest steelmaker, made no comment on its potential rival's move, saying that China Steel was likely to boost output before Formosa Plastics.
"We are working on an expansion plan at a Taichung steel factory and may soon increase steel supplies before Formosa Plastics can make its products since it will still take the company a long time to build up the infrastructure," Lee said.
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