The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) yesterday said it has approved 10 companies’ applications to invest NT$40.7 billion (US$1.47 billion) as part of the government’s Invest in Taiwan initiative.
Printed circuit board maker (PCB) Unimicron Technology Corp (欣興電子) applied for a second round of investment totaling NT$26 billion to add eight production lines in Hsinchu County to expand its flip-chip substrate capacity, the ministry said yesterday.
The company is expanding capacity to meet rising demand from 5G applications, consumer electronics and automotive components, the ministry said, adding that the investment would create 677 local jobs.
Photo: Win Semiconductors official Web site
The new project would bring Unimicron’s total investment to more than NT$50 billion, creating 1,300 jobs.
Unimicron first participated in the Invest in Taiwan initiative in 2019, investing in a Taoyuan plant. The company produces PCBs, high-density interconnection boards, flexible PCBs, rigid-flex PCBs and integrated circuit carriers, among others. Its customers include leaders in the semiconductor supply chain.
The Invest in Taiwan initiative encourages quality industrial investment in Taiwan from returning Taiwanese companies, as well as local firms looking to upgrade their production by providing the businesses with favorable loan terms and other means of support.
Win Semiconductors Corp (穩懋半導體), founded in October 1999 and the first pure-play 6-inch gallium arsenide (GaAs) foundry in the world, is participating in the “roots in Taiwan” category of the Invest in Taiwan program.
Also a returning participant, Win Semiconductors previously expanded its facilities in Taoyuan with the help of the program.
However, in anticipation of capacities running short, it is planning to invest NT$11 billion in the Kaohsiung section of Southern Taiwan Science Park (南部科學園區) to build another 6-inch GaAs foundry. The wafers produced at the plant will serve mobile handset, wireless infrastructure and 3D laser detection needs.
Other applicants approved yesterday were local snack food conglomerate Imei Foods Co (義美食品), bicycle parts maker Super B Precision Tools Co (保忠精密工具), Hung Han Technology Corp (弘翰科技), Ren Yow Industrial Co (仁侑工業), Unlifa Co (允力發), Super B Precision Tools Co (保忠精密), Medserv Biotech Co (長寅科技), Shen Fa Xing Food Co (盛發興食品) and Global Green Material Co (豐溢綠能材料).
Since the program was implemented, the Invest in Taiwan initiative has attracted more than 1,100 businesses to return, reinvest or expand in the nation, pouring in NT$1.55 trillion in investments and creating 123,038 local jobs.
HORMUZ ISSUE: The US president said he expected crude prices to drop at the end of the war, which he called a ‘minor excursion’ that could continue ‘for a little while’ The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Kuwait started reducing oil production, as the near-closure of the crucial Strait of Hormuz ripples through energy markets and affects global supply. Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (ADNOC) is “managing offshore production levels to address storage requirements,” the company said in a statement, without giving details. Kuwait Petroleum Corp said it was lowering production at its oil fields and refineries after “Iranian threats against safe passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz.” The war in the Middle East has all but closed Hormuz, the narrow waterway linking the Persian Gulf to the open seas,
Nanya Technology Corp (南亞科技) yesterday said the DRAM supply crunch could extend through 2028, as the artificial intelligence (AI) boom has led the world’s major memory makers to dramatically reduce production of standard DRAM and allocate a significant portion of their capacity for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips. The most severe supply constraints would stretch to the first half of next year due to “very limited” increases in new DRAM capacity worldwide, Nanya Technology president Lee Pei-ing (李培瑛) told a news briefing. The company plans to increase monthly 12-inch wafer capacity to 20,000 in the first half of 2028 after a
Taiwan has enough crude oil reserves for more than 100 days and sufficient natural gas reserves for more than 11 days, both above the regulatory safety requirement, Minister of Economic Affairs Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) said yesterday, adding that the government would prioritize domestic price stability as conflicts in the Middle East continue. Overall, energy supply for this month is secure, and the government is continuing efforts to ensure sufficient supply for next month, Kung told reporters after meeting with representatives from business groups at the ministry in Taipei. The ministry has been holding daily cross-ministry meetings at the Executive Yuan to ensure
RATIONING: The proposal would give the Trump administration ample leverage to negotiate investments in the US as it decides how many chips to give each country US officials are debating a new regulatory framework for exporting artificial intelligence (AI) chips and are considering requiring foreign nations to invest in US AI data centers or security guarantees as a condition for granting exports of 200,000 chips or more, according to a document seen by Reuters. The rules are not yet final and could change. They would be the first attempt to regulate the flow of AI chips to US allies and partners since US President Donald Trump’s administration said it rescinded its predecessor’s so-called AI diffusion rules. Those rules sought to keep a significant amount of AI
RSS