Shipbuilder CSBC Corp Taiwan (台灣國際造船) yesterday launched construction of the nation’s first domestic crane vessel — the Green Jade — after inking an early work agreement with CSBC-DEME Wind Engineering Co (台船環海).
CSBC-DEME is a joint venture between CSBC and Belgium’s Dredging, Environmental and Marine Engineering NV.
The Green Jade, scheduled to be completed by the end of 2022, would enable CSBC-DEME to carry out engineering, procurement, construction and installation services for the offshore wind energy industry.
The 216.5m vessel is to be equipped with a 4,000-tonne crane, as well as a class-3 dynamite positioning system, CSBC said.
The Green Jade would carry multiple foundation piles and other turbine components per trip while housing up to 160 crew members, it said.
CSBC-DEME plans to use the vessel to provide services to the Hai Long (海龍) offshore wind farm project off the coast of Changhua County, which is being codeveloped by Northland Power Inc, Yushan Energy Pte (玉山能源) and Mitsui & Co Ltd.
The vessel would also help transport and install submarine foundations and wind turbines for the Chong Neng (中能) wind farm project off Changhua codeveloped by China Steel Corp (中鋼) and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners K/S.
In related news, Germany-based Wpd AG on Wednesday announced that it has inked an agreement with Taiwan Green Power Co Ltd (台灣綠電), a subsidiary of Lealea Group (力麗集團), to jointly develop offshore wind farm site No. 28 off Changhua.
The project, which is expected to be part of a third tender round scheduled for the second half of this year, would have an installed capacity of up to 600 megawatts (MW).
Wpd has sold a 25 percent stake in its 640MW offshore wind farm near Yunlin County to Thailand-based independent power producer Thai Electricity Generating Public Co Ltd.
The company did not disclose the money amount.
Wpd, which is heading another 350MW wind project off the coast of Taoyuan scheduled for commissioning by 2022, is in the process of signing supply agreement while awaiting the financial closure, likely in the fourth quarter of this year.
RECORD BUDGET: TSMC does plan to raise its proposed capital expenditure a lot, and could benefit if Intel outsources more of its production to foundries, analysts said Intel Corp’s earnings conference call on Thursday is expected to clarify the US semiconductor giant’s outsourcing production plans, which would be crucial regarding Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s (TSMC, 台積電) performance, analysts said. “TSMC stands to benefit if Intel outsources more of its fabrication to foundries,” SinoPac Securities Investment Service Corp (永豐投顧) analysts said in a note on Friday. Yuanta Securities Investment Consulting Co (元大投顧) was more cautious, saying that Intel’s contribution initially would be limited, but its outsourcing plans would still highlight TSMC’s leadership in technology, it added. “Intel will continue to manufacture server or high-end central processing units [CPUs], which have higher
MediaTek Inc (聯發科) yesterday announced it would give incentive bonuses totaling NT$1.7 billion (US$59.7 million) to its employees and those at the firm’s major subsidiaries, after the smartphone chip supplier’s revenue hit US$10 billion last year. This is the biggest incentive bonus the Hsinchu-based handset chip designer has ever distributed in its 23-year history. About 17,000 full-time employees of MediaTek and five of its subsidiaries, including Richtek Technology Corp (立錡科技) and Airoha Technology Corp (絡達科技), would receive a “red envelope” of NT$100,000 each, the company said. “Surpassing US$10 billion is just the beginning. We will continue to [grow] on this basis,” MediaTek
TO SPUR REVENUE: The contract chipmaker expects its profit to grow 15 percent this year, outpacing the foundry industry’s projected advance of about 10 percent Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday raised its projected capital spending for this year by 62 percent, a new high, in an attempt to satisfy customer demand for advanced technologies in the production of central processing units, high-performance-computing (HPC) devices and 5G applications. After investing US$17.24 billion last year, TSMC this year plans to spend US$25 billion to US$28 billion on manufacturing equipment and new facilities, including a fab in the US. About 80 percent of the budget would be allocated for developing advanced technologies including 3, 5 and 7-nanometer technologies, the company said. The larger-than-expected capital spending prompted speculation
Norway’s oil and gas reserves have made it one of the world’s wealthiest countries, but its dreams for deep-sea discovery now center on something different. This time, Oslo is looking for a leading role in mining copper, zinc and other metals found on the seabed and in hot demand in green technologies. The country could license companies for deep-sea mining as early as 2023, the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy said, potentially placing it among the first countries to harvest seabed metals for electric vehicle batteries, wind turbines and solar farms. However, that could also place it on the front line of
RSS