Shin Kong Life Insurance Co (新光人壽) yesterday said it would relinquish land-use rights, or known as surface rights, for two plots in Taipei’s Beitou District (北投), paving the way for Nvidia Corp to expand its office footprint in Taiwan.
The insurer said it made the decision “in the interest of the nation’s greater good” and would not seek compensation from taxpayers for potential future losses, calling the move a gesture to resolve a months-long impasse among the insurer, the Taipei City Government and the US chip giant.
“The decision was made on the condition that the Taipei City Government reimburses the related costs we have already paid,” Shin Kong Life chairman Mark Wei (魏寶生) told a news conference.
Photo: Tien Yu-hua, Taipei Times
“We hope this move will help break the deadlock and keep Nvidia firmly rooted here, as it is crucial to Taiwan’s industrial development,” Wei said.
Nvidia approached Shin Kong Life — the owner of its office in Taipei’s Neihu District (內湖) — last year, seeking to take over the Beitou land-use rights to accommodate its growing operations in Taiwan, where its major partners, such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), are based.
Shin Kong Life, which obtained the rights in 2021, signed a memorandum of understanding with Nvidia in May this year, under which the chipmaker would assume the rights and reimburse the insurer for its expenses.
That agreement lapsed earlier this month after landowner Taipei City Government rejected the proposed transfer, citing legal restrictions intended to prevent undue profit.
City officials instead asked the insurer to submit a compensation request for terminating the land-use contract.
Wei declined to disclose figures, saying only that if the concession could help secure a stronger industrial future for Taiwan, the company was “willing to contribute.”
The insurer’s decision marked a sharp turn from its previous stance that the land could generate billions of New Taiwan dollars in rental income and that shareholder interests should be its main priority.
Shin Kong Life had also proposed constructing the office complex on Nvidia’s behalf, but the US company turned down the offer.
The integration of Shin Kong Life’s operations into TS Financial Holding Co (台新新光金控) — the new entity created following the merger of Shin Kong Financial Holding Co (新光金控) and Taishin Financial Holding Co (台新金控) — had given city officials reason to withhold approval and restart discussions over the plots.
Wei said the insurer informed the city government and financial regulators before making the announcement public.
Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) yesterday said he appreciated Shin Kong Life’s cooperation, calling it “an encouraging step” toward Nvidia’s expansion in the capital.
The city government would brief the US chipmaker on the latest progress, Chiang said.
Deputy Taipei Mayor Lee Ssu-chuan (李四川) said both sides would “sit down and negotiate” the reimbursement figure, adding that the exact cost of design and preparatory work would need further confirmation.
Earlier yesterday, Minister of Economic Affairs Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) said the ministry was assisting Nvidia in scouting a site in Taiwan to build its office complex.
The ministry is planning to provide more than 10 sites to Nvidia by Nov. 23, Kung said.
Even if some of the sites fail to meet one or two of the company’s requirements, they would still be offered as references, he added.
Additional reporting by Meryl Kao
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