FITNESS
Pure Group to exit Taiwan
Hong Kong-based lifestyle and fitness brand Pure Group yesterday announced that it would close its Pure Yoga business in Taiwan on Jan. 25 because of poor results. However, the company did not elaborate on what measures it planned to take to support its members in Taiwan. The Chinese-language United Daily News cited a Pure Yoga public relations officer as saying that the closure would affect its 5,000 members and 100 workers in Taiwan, and that members would be assisted with refund procedures to protect their rights. The group, which has operated two yoga studios in Taipei for 12 years, said that the move was specific to its Taiwan business and had no effect on other operations in Hong Kong, Singapore, Shanghai and Beijing, where its expansion is continuing as planned. The expansion includes the opening of three new locations next month: a Pure Fitness and a Pure Yoga in Shanghai’s Century Link and a Pure Yoga in Singapore’s Republic Plaza.
CHIPMAKERS
TSMC gets approval for fab
Environmental regulators yesterday gave the green light for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) to open a 3-nanometer fab in Tainan’s Southern Taiwan Science Park (南部科學園區). TSMC pledged to source at least 20 percent of its energy and half of its water from renewable and recycled sources. The new facility is estimated to cost up to NT$600 billion (US$19.47 million), with construction to begin in 2020, the company has said. The first semiconductor production equipment is scheduled to be installed in 2021, with mass production to commence in 2022 or 2023, it added. The Ministry of Economic Affairs’ Bureau of Energy said that the nation has ample energy to power all industrial expansion.
CONSTRUCTION
Continental names new CEO
Continental Engineering Corp (大陸工程) yesterday approved the appointment of Simon Buttery as its CEO and agreed to the retirement of president Ken Hung (洪義乾). Buttery has significant experience in engineering and construction projects, having led numerous design and build initiatives, and specializes in large-scale commercial development. Prior to joining the firm, Buttery was CEO of Carillion International Ltd, where he was responsible for the management of more than 15,000 employees at its operations in North America, the Middle East and North Africa. During his tenure as CEO of Carillion Canada and the Caribbean, he successfully grew the business and doubled turnover within five years. The personnel reshuffle is to take place on Jan. 7.
PHARMACEUTICALS
TAHO to delist from TPEX
TAHO Pharmaceuticals Ltd (泰合生技) yesterday announced that its board of directors has approved a decision to delist its shares from the Emerging Stock Board on the Taipei Exchange (TPEX). Despite gaining marketing approval in Japan for TAH4411, a drug to ease nausea and vomiting for patients undergoing chemotherapy, the company has been beset by tepid sales and cooling reception from investors. The firm’s shares yesterday closed at NT$2.2 in Taipei trading, down 65 percent since the beginning of this year. It reported losses per share of NT$0.64 at the end of June. Freed from the regulations imposed on publicly traded companies, the firm said it would have more room to develop its long-term strategy and bolster its finances.
Intel Corp chief executive officer Lip-Bu Tan (陳立武) is expected to meet with Taiwanese suppliers next month in conjunction with the opening of the Computex Taipei trade show, supply chain sources said on Monday. The visit, the first for Tan to Taiwan since assuming his new post last month, would be aimed at enhancing Intel’s ties with suppliers in Taiwan as he attempts to help turn around the struggling US chipmaker, the sources said. Tan is to hold a banquet to celebrate Intel’s 40-year presence in Taiwan before Computex opens on May 20 and invite dozens of Taiwanese suppliers to exchange views
Application-specific integrated circuit designer Faraday Technology Corp (智原) yesterday said that although revenue this quarter would decline 30 percent from last quarter, it retained its full-year forecast of revenue growth of 100 percent. The company attributed the quarterly drop to a slowdown in customers’ production of chips using Faraday’s advanced packaging technology. The company is still confident about its revenue growth this year, given its strong “design-win” — or the projects it won to help customers design their chips, Faraday president Steve Wang (王國雍) told an online earnings conference. “The design-win this year is better than we expected. We believe we will win
Power supply and electronic components maker Delta Electronics Inc (台達電) yesterday said it plans to ship its new 1 megawatt charging systems for electric trucks and buses in the first half of next year at the earliest. The new charging piles, which deliver up to 1 megawatt of charging power, are designed for heavy-duty electric vehicles, and support a maximum current of 1,500 amperes and output of 1,250 volts, Delta said in a news release. “If everything goes smoothly, we could begin shipping those new charging systems as early as in the first half of next year,” a company official said. The new
Quanta Computer Inc (廣達) chairman Barry Lam (林百里) is expected to share his views about the artificial intelligence (AI) industry’s prospects during his speech at the company’s 37th anniversary ceremony, as AI servers have become a new growth engine for the equipment manufacturing service provider. Lam’s speech is much anticipated, as Quanta has risen as one of the world’s major AI server suppliers. The company reported a 30 percent year-on-year growth in consolidated revenue to NT$1.41 trillion (US$43.35 billion) last year, thanks to fast-growing demand for servers, especially those with AI capabilities. The company told investors in November last year that
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