Taiwan’s largest shipbuilding company called on the nation’s three major shipbuilders to set aside their differences and band together to achieve the goal set by the administration of President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) of building submarines.
The Tsai administration has highlighted domestically produced submarines and training aircraft as staples of its national defense policies, with the stated goal of operating a self-built submarine by 2025.
Taiwan Shipbuilding Corp chairman Lai Sun-quae (賴杉桂) said completing such an objective would be a difficult and complex process that would require every ounce of expertise Taiwan has to offer, as well as some foreign support.
Photo: Chang Chung-i, Taipei Times
Despite being competitors and having some bad blood between them, the nation’s shipbuilders should put aside their differences, as indigenous submarines are a national goal, Lai said.
The Taiwan Shipbuilding Industry Association on Friday hosted an event for companies to display the fruits of their research, with Taiwan Shipbuilding, Jong Shyn Shipbuilding and Ching Fu Shipbuilding providing demonstrations.
Taiwan Shipbuilding displayed sections of its own prototype submarine, including the torpedo room and the front end, and announced where it would base its manufacturing operations for the project should it be awarded the contract.
The company said the details of the submarine’s construction would not be publicized for fear of compromising confidential information.
Ching Fu said it would display a finished prototype for a submarine control system capable of integrating 90 other systems at the Kaohsiung International Maritime and Defense Expo in September.
China Steel Corp said it plans to replace HY-80 steel with a new type known as HSLA-80, which is to be examined by the Ship and Ocean Industries Research and Development Center in the second half of this year.
China Steel added that it would use HSLA-80 in military ships currently under construction on a trial basis.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of National Defense said it would divide the indigenous submarine project into contractual design and construction, which companies would bid on.
However, Taiwan Shipbuilding, the firm most likely to be awarded the project, suggested that the contract be awarded as one project to avoid mistakes and cut down on the ministry’s expenses, sources said.
By awarding the contract to one company, that firm would be able to manage and cooperate with other companies, foreign or domestic, Lai said, adding that, contrary to popular belief, lump sum projects do not cause the company that wins the bid to monopolize resources.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
Many Japanese couples are coming to Taiwan to obtain donated sperm or eggs for fertility treatment due to conservatism in their home country, Taiwan’s high standards and low costs, doctors said. One in every six couples in Japan is receiving infertility treatment, Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare data show. About 70,000 children are born in Japan every year through in vitro fertilization (IVF), or about one in every 11 children born. Few people accept donated reproductive cells in Japan due to a lack of clear regulations, leaving treatment in a “gray zone,” Taichung Nuwa Fertility Center medical director Wang Huai-ling (王懷麟)
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