Gintech Energy Corp (昱晶), the nation’s second-biggest solar cell maker, said it expected product prices to rise through the first half of the year as demand improves.
Global prices will probably climb about 2 percent each month, president Pan Wen-whe (潘文輝) told reporters in Taipei yesterday.
Global demand for solar panels may rise 20 percent this year as governments encourage the use of alternative energy to replace fossil fuels, Pan said.
Global installations of photovoltaic solar systems are forecast to jump 39 percent this year to 22.2 gigawatts, technology researcher Isuppli said last month.
“Market conditions have improved,” Pan said, adding that the company has been running its plants at full capacity.
Miaoli-based Gintech plans to boost its annual cell production capacity to 1.5 gigawatts by the end of August, from 930 megawatts currently, chairman Wenent Pan (潘文炎) said at the media briefing.
Capital spending will rise to NT$5.5 billion (US$187 million) this year from NT$1.5 billion last year as the company expands capacity, chief financial officer Andrew Shih (石同福) told reporters.
Gintech rose 1.2 percent to close at NT$93.80 in Taipei trading, underperforming the benchmark TAIEX, which climbed 1.8 percent.
Motech Industries Inc is the nation’s biggest solar cell maker by market value.
The domestic unit of the Chinese-owned, Dutch-headquartered chipmaker Nexperia BV will soon be able to produce semiconductors locally within China, according to two company sources. Nexperia is at the center of a global tug-of-war over critical semiconductor technology, with a Dutch court in February ordering a probe into alleged mismanagement at the company. The geopolitical tussle has disrupted supply chains, with some carmakers reportedly forced to cut production due to chip shortages. Local production would allow Nexperia’s domestic arm, Nexperia Semiconductors (China) Ltd (安世半導體中國), to bypass restrictions in place since October on the supply of silicon wafers — etched with tiny components to
Singapore-based ride-hailing and delivery giant Grab Holdings Ltd has applied for regulatory approval to acquire the Taiwan operations of Germany-based Delivery Hero SE's Foodpanda in a deal valued at about US$600 million. Grab submitted the filing to the Fair Trade Commission on Friday last week, with the transaction subject to regulatory review and approval, the company said in a statement yesterday. Its independent governance structure would help foster a healthy and competitive market in Taiwan if the deal is approved, Grab said. Grab, which is listed on the NASDAQ, said in the filing that US-based Uber Technologies Inc holds about 13 percent of
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday received government approval to deploy its advanced 3-nanometer (3nm) process at its second fab currently under construction in Japan, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a news release. The ministry green-lit the plan for the facility in Kumamoto, which is scheduled to start installing equipment and come online in 2028 with a monthly production capacity of 15,000 12-inch wafers, the ministry said. The Department of Investment Review in June 2024 authorized a US$5.26 billion investment for the facility, slated to manufacture 6- to 12nm chips, significantly less advanced than 3nm process. At a meeting with
Taiwan is open to joining a global liquefied natural gas (LNG) program if one is created, but on the condition that countries provide delivery even in a scenario where there is a conflict with China, an energy department official said yesterday. While Taiwan’s priority is to have enough LNG at home, the nation is open to exploring potential strategic reserves in other countries such as Japan or South Korea, Energy Administration Deputy Director-General Chen Chung-hsien (陳崇憲) said. While the LNG market does not have a global reserve for emergencies like that of oil, the concept has been raised a few times —
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