State-run CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) plans to expand its procurement and investment in US natural gas as part of Taipei’s tariff negotiations with Washington, chairman Fang Jeng-zen (方振仁) said on Thursday last week.
CPC signed a letter of intent with Alaska Gasline Development Corp (AGDC) in March last year, aiming to buy liquefied natural gas (LNG) and invest in its Alaska LNG project.
After receiving the project developer’s front-end engineering design report and completing an assessment in the first half of this year, CPC plans to increase its annual LNG purchases from the US by as much as 6 million tonnes, Fang told a news conference in Taipei.
Photo courtesy of CPC Corp, Taiwan
The move would raise the share of US LNG in CPC’s total natural gas imports to 33 percent to 35 percent from 10 percent, ahead of two other major LNG supply sources Qatar and Australia, he said.
Procurement of Alaska LNG would gradually increase yearly, with shipments likely to begin as early as 2032, he said, citing the developer’s projection.
The Alaska LNG project is jointly promoted by AGDC and major developer Glenfarne Group LLC, CPC said.
It involves constructing a pipeline to transport natural gas from Alaska’s North Slope and the construction of a liquefaction facility, with total investment costing up to US$44 billion, it said.
In addition to gas procurement, CPC is also seeking to acquire a stake in the project, Fang said, adding that the company has not yet set an investment target, as it depends on further negotiations.
After several years flying high as Asia’s best Nvidia Corp proxy, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is increasingly vying with other artificial intelligence (AI) stocks for investor attention. Stock traders are chasing a wider array of beneficiaries as mainstream usage of AI creates demand for hardware beyond the most-advanced chips TSMC makes for Nvidia. Subthemes from the deepening memory crunch to advances in robotics are also luring bids. At the same time, investment caps on single stocks are pushing funds to diversify, while retail investors long familiar with TSMC through its US depositary receipts are being offered a broader set of
UNDER MICROSCOPE: Taiwan detained three people who allegedly conspired to buy servers in Taiwan and export them using fraudulent documentation, prosecutors said Nvidia Corp chief executive officer Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) on Saturday urged Super Micro Computer Inc to tighten up on compliance after Taiwan detained three people this week for allegedly making fraudulent declarations about artificial intelligence (AI) servers made by its US partner. The development marked the nation’s first crackdown on semiconductor smuggling, which grew after the US slapped restrictions on exports of high-end chips such as Nvidia AI accelerators to China. Nvidia is “rigorous” in explaining regulations to all of its partners, Huang told reporters after arriving in Taipei. “Ultimately Super Micro has to run their own company,” he said in response to
Netherlands-based semiconductor equipment supplier ASML Holding NV yesterday said that it is planning to hire an additional 1,000 people in Taiwan this year in response to growing demand from clients. ASML had previously planned to recruit 600 people this year, but that the plan has been adjusted upward, ASML vice president and ASML Taiwan general manager Grace Wang (汪佳慧) told reporters. ASML has a workforce of more than 4,500 in Taiwan, accounting for about 10 percent of its global total, Wang said. This year’s recruitment campaign would focus on adding people in the customer support, manufacturing and supply chain domains to assist ASML
TECH RELIANCE: Growth is increasingly reflecting an unequal K-shaped distribution, where technology sectors outperform and other industries struggle, an expert said Standard Chartered Bank has significantly raised its forecast for Taiwan’s economic growth to 9.5 percent this year, up from 7.6 percent previously, citing surging artificial intelligence (AI) demand driving exports, semiconductor production and investment. The upgrade reflects a sustained AI supercycle that continues to fuel demand for advanced chips and technology infrastructure, which form the backbone of Taiwan’s exports, the bank said in a report this week. “We raise our 2026 growth forecast to reflect a much stronger-than-expected first-quarter GDP figure,” Standard Chartered senior economist for greater China and Asia Tommy Wu (胡東安) said in the report. Driven largely by a 35.3 percent
RSS