By Jeanny Kao and Ben Blanchard
TAIPEI (Reuters) – Taiwan could be “comfortable” to see its chip corporations spend money on the European Union however deeper ties with the bloc akin to Taipei’s relations with Washington may assist pave the best way for that, a senior Taiwanese official informed Reuters.
The EU has been courting Taiwan, a serious semiconductor producer, as one of many “like-minded” companions it want to work with beneath the European Chips Act unveiled in February, because it tries to cope with a persistent international chip scarcity.
Whereas Taiwan and the EU held-high degree commerce talks final month, lower than per week after that assembly Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd (TSMC) stated it had no concrete plans for factories in Europe, having flagged a 12 months in the past that it was within the early phases of reviewing a possible growth into Germany.
Taiwan Deputy Financial system Minister Chen Chern-chyi, whose portfolio covers financial relations with Europe, stated late Monday that whereas he couldn’t converse on behalf of chip corporations, he famous they haven’t stated they don’t seem to be going to Europe.
“However the authorities’s place is that we’re comfortable to see our corporations having a world footprint, together with the USA and Europe, who’re each our like-minded companions. On a coverage degree we’re in fact very comfortable to see them deploying globally, and could be glad to see it occur,” he stated.
Within the face of sustained Chinese language political and navy strain designed to power Taiwan to just accept China’s sovereignty claims, Taipei has been eager to bolster ties with different democracies even within the absence of formal diplomatic relations.
In a single wrinkle for EU ambitions, Taiwan’s GlobalWafers Co Ltd failed in February in a 4.35 billion euro ($4.36 billion) takeover try of German chip provider Siltronic.
Chen stated he was not conscious the ministry, which has to approve large-scale oversees investments, had acquired any new functions for EU chip tasks up to now this 12 months.
Taiwan, he added, needed to have the form of shut, institutionalised commerce, know-how and financial dialogue ties with the EU that they’ve with the USA, the place TSMC is constructing a $12 billion manufacturing unit and GlobalWafers a $5 billion plant.
“Our interactions with the USA have been fairly extra, communication is nearer. We additionally hope to develop the identical shut relationship with the EU,” Chen stated.
“If it’s like this, it could be very useful for our corporations for his or her consideration in direction of and data of Europe.”
Taiwan has additionally been pushing for a bilateral funding settlement with the EU, although there was no progress.
Chen stated whereas that is still a coverage aim, they weren’t ruling out offers which are presently “extra achievable”.
“We even hope to have a free commerce settlement with the EU, which might be the most effective. The EU has plenty of FTAs with different international locations, and if the EU is keen, we’re too.”
($1 = 0.9987 euros)
(Reporting by Jeanny Kao and Ben Blanchard; Modifying by Stephen Coates)
