President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday vowed to help local manufacturers solve a water supply shortage, as local semiconductor firms play a crucial role in global supply chains.
Tsai made the remarks at a groundbreaking ceremony for a 12-inch fab that Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp (力積電) is building in Miaoli County’s Tongluo Science Park (銅鑼科學園區).
Powerchip is the world’s No. 7 foundry service provider by revenue.
Photo: Cheng I-hwa, Bloomberg
Tsai’s comments came after criticism from Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators, who accused her of incompetency in tackling the crisis, despite splurging on river revitalization and reservoir dredging.
Tsai has been targeted as the government plans to tighten water restrictions in some areas of Taichung, as well as Miaoli and Changhua counties, from April 6.
“The government will proactively seek diverse approaches to conserve water and improve water allocation,” Tsai said. “The government will also explore more alternative water resources, including emergency wells and boosting groundwater supply.”
Manufacturers in the Hsinchu Science Park (新竹科學園區), which houses Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電), are to be spared further restrictions thanks to water supplied via the Taoyuan-Hsinchu pipeline.
The government has a vision to make Taiwan a center of advanced semiconductor process technologies, part of a broader plan to develop six strategic industries, Tsai said.
It has been a major undertaking of the government to solicit investment from multinational companies and overseas Taiwanese manufacturers, she said.
In response to complaints by Miaoli County Commissioner Hsu Yao-chang (徐耀昌) about the water restrictions, Minister of Economic Affairs Wang Mei-hua (王美花) said that only a few areas of the county face additional rationing.
The new measure is expected to affect about 1.064 million people in the areas, the ministry said.
The priority is to prepare detailed plans for water surcharges, while water rate hikes are also to be discussed, Wang said.
‘NO SECURITY RISK’: The Railway Bureau reassured the public that the technicians’ activities were limited to technical guidance and did not involve sensitive systems The Railway Bureau yesterday said it had invited eight Chinese technicians to assist with an airport MRT construction project. The bureau issued the confirmation after an Internet user said Chinese nationals had entered the construction zone of Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport’s Terminal 3 project. They asked why “individuals from an enemy state” were allowed access to such a major national infrastructure project, which raised serious concerns over Taiwan’s industrial safety, sensitive systems and information security. The bureau’s Northern Region Engineering Branch Office said subcontractor Taiwan Handle Industrial Co (台灣手把工業) of the Taoyuan airport MRT’s “Contract No. CU05 Project A14 Station Civil, MEP &
A US uncrewed surface vessel (USV) encountered multiple Chinese warships during an autonomous transit of the Taiwan Strait, US defense company Seasats said in a statement on Wednesday. Seasats announced that a Lightfish USV had completed the first autonomous transit of the Taiwan Strait. Over five days, the USV traversed the entire length of the Strait while constantly monitoring surface vessel traffic, the company said. The Lightfish encountered multiple Chinese warships, one of which was a Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) Type 056 corvette, it said. The Chinese vessels were operating “well within Taiwan’s exclusive economic zone without transmitting their identity via the
GREATER REACH? Auto parts and wood products would face tariffs of up to 15%, matching those targeting the EU, Japan and South Korea, Vice Premier said The US has announced that preferential tariff treatment for Taiwan’s non-semiconductor Section 232 goods would take effect retroactively from May 1, the Executive Yuan said yesterday. The US government yesterday posted a notice on the Federal Register’s public inspection Web site previewing tariff concessions for Taiwan under a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on Taiwan-US investment after two months of negotiations. The MOU signed on Jan. 15 stipulated three major preferential tariff arrangements: a 15 percent “reciprocal” tariff rate for Taiwan without stacking most-favored nation (MFN) rates; preferential Section 232 treatment for semiconductors and related products; and preferential Section 232 treatment for non-semiconductor
TIT-FOR-TAT: The US allegedly revoked the visa of a Chinese national working at Xinhua News Agency in the US in response to Beijing’s expulsion of Vivian Wang The Presidential Office yesterday condemned China for expelling a New York Times correspondent from Beijing following the newspaper’s interview with President William Lai (賴清德), saying the move highlighted Beijing’s suppression of press freedom and its threat to international news media. Taiwan has noted a series of recent incidents in which Beijing used similar tactics to “threaten and pressure international media outlets and journalists,” Presidential Office spokeswoman Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) said in a statement. “This concerns not only press freedom and freedom of expression, but also the safety of journalists, and Taiwan and relevant partners are paying close attention to the situation,” she
RSS