Sing Lan Co Ltd (新嵐企業), which operates tea beverage chain 50 Lan (50嵐), is to set up a global headquarters in Kaohsiung, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday after it approved the company’s application to invest in the nation via a government incentive program for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
With 174 stores nationwide, Sing Lan is targeting the US, Canada, Australia and Malaysia as it seeks to expand overseas. It plans to invest NT$300 million (US$9.99 million) expanding its logistics center and warehouses, as well as setting up the new headquarters in the Kaoshiung Hofa Industrial Park (高雄和發工業區), the ministry said.
The ministry also gave a green light to eight other SME investment applications, including Fox Automation Technology Inc (承鼎精密) and Gold Chains Sheet Metal Tech Co Ltd (高群鈑金), as well as hand tool suppliers Chu Min Co Ltd (茱銘) and Honiton Industries Inc (利徠實業).
Fox Automation, a subsidiary of Foxsemicon Integrated Technology Inc (京鼎), is to invest NT$1.8 billion setting up a smart manufacturing facility in Miaoli County’s Jhunan Township (竹南), as the company aims to expand its production capacity and strengthen cooperation with Applied Materials Inc, the ministry said.
Gold Chains is to invest NT$500 million setting up a smart manufacturing facility for slot and gachapon machines, while Chu Min and Honiton are to invest about NT$200 million each establishing new plants in Taichung’s Taiping District (太平) to handle mounting orders, it said.
Seamless steel pipe manufacturer Meng Chang Precision Machine Industry (猛展鋼鐵), which supplies automakers Honda Motor Co and Toyota Motor Corp, is to invest NT$200 million to establish a new automated plant in the Yunlin Fengtian Industrial Park (雲林豐田工業區), while Fupite Plastics Mold Co Ltd (富比特塑膠模具), which counts auto parts maker Tong Yang Industry Co Ltd (東陽實業) and furniture maker IKEA among its clients, is to invest NT$200 million to set up a research-and-development center, it added.
The ministry has approved 121 SME investment applications since the program began in July last year, which would result in an estimated NT$53.2 billion in domestic investments.
The government yesterday approved applications by Alphabet Inc’s Google to invest NT$27.08 billion (US$859.98 million) in Taiwan, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a statement. The Department of Investment Review approved two investments proposed by Google, with much of the funds to be used for data processing and electronic information supply services, as well as inventory procurement businesses in the semiconductor field, the ministry said. It marks the second consecutive year that Google has applied to increase its investment in Taiwan. Google plans to infuse NT$25.34 billion into Charter Investments Ltd (特許投資顧問) through its Singapore-based subsidiary Fructan Holdings Singapore Pte Ltd, and
Micron Technology Inc is a driving force pushing the US Congress to pass legislation that would put new export restrictions on equipment its Chinese competitors use to make their chips, according to people familiar with the matter. A US House of Representatives panel yesterday was to vote on the “MATCH Act,” a bill designed to close gaps in restrictions on chipmaking equipment. It would also pressure foreign companies that sell equipment to Chinese chipmaking facilities to align with export curbs on US companies like Lam Research Corp and Applied Materials Inc. The bill targets facilities operated by China’s ChangXin Memory Technologies Inc
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Singapore-based ride-hailing and delivery giant Grab Holdings’ planned acquisition of Foodpanda’s Taiwan operations has yet to enter the formal review stage, as regulators await supplementary documents, the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) said yesterday. Acting FTC Chairman Chen Chih-min (陳志民) told the legislature’s Economics Committee that although Grab submitted its application on March 27, the case has not been officially accepted because required materials remain incomplete. Once the filing is finalized, the FTC would launch a formal probe into the deal, focusing on issues such as cross-shareholding and potential restrictions on market competition, Chen told lawmakers. Grab last month announced that it would acquire
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