Foreign firms pledge NT$46 billion in investments at MOEA event

Taipei, Sept. 3 (CNA) Twelve foreign enterprises signed investment letters of intent (LOI) worth an estimated NT$46 billion (US$1.43 billion) at an event held by the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) at SEMICON Taiwan on Tuesday.

Of the 12 firms, four are Japanese, three are American, three are European while two are from other regions, according to the ministry.

The businesses are engaged in various fields including IC design, IC manufacturing, semiconductor equipment and materials, biotech, real estate and logistics, ministry officials said.

The Taiwan Business Alliance Conference, an annual event held by the ministry to attract foreign investors, was held alongside SEMICON Taiwan for the first time this year in the expectation that more foreign enterprises could see the advantage of investing in Taiwan in the boom of artificial intelligence (AI) applications, ministry officials noted.

Semiconductor-related companies include the U.S.'s Applied Materials and Micron Technology; NXP Semiconductors of the Netherlands; Germany's Carl Zeiss Co.; and Taiwan Fujibo Precision Materials Co., Central Glass Co. and Taiwan Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo Co. from Japan.

Addressing the event, Economic Minister Kuo Jyh-huei (郭智輝) said that despite being about the size of the Netherlands and Maryland in the United States, Taiwan has "the world's most comprehensive industrial cluster in the semiconductor sector."

This showed Taiwan's "critical position in the supply chain," Kuo added.

Quoting Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳), Kuo said Taiwan was at the center of the AI revolution.

The minister added that Nvidia and AMD's decision to set up research centers in Taiwan represented "a win-win strategy."

An economic official told the media on the sidelines that they expected investment from the 12 companies to total around NT$46 billion over the next three years.

Asked whether the companies signing LOIs had always invested the pledged amount, the official said this was the case 80 to 90 percent of the time.

Other companies signing the LOI included JRE (East Japan Railway Co.) Business Development Taiwan and Switzerland's SHL Medical.