Confirming a trend for the island's companies to focus increasingly on green technologies, Taiwan largest cement maker plans to build a large solar power plant, the company said on Oct. 11.
Taiwan Cement is looking to build the 100-megawatt plant in southern Pingtung county, targeting an investment worth "tens of billions" of Taiwan dollars, the Commercial Times reported, citing chairman Koo Cheng-yun.
Taiwan Cement is in talks with Taiwan Sugar, a major land owner, on terms for leasing a piece of land in Pingtung, according to the report.
Solar energy has attracted significant interest in Taiwan, with Inventec Corp., a leading contract notebook computer maker, saying last month it will invest at least 3 billion Taiwan dollars (US$95 million)on a solar cell unit.
Chip giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) announced last year an investment of about US$192 million for a 20% stake in Motech Industries, the island's largest producer of solar cells.
TSMC, the world's top contract microchip maker by revenue, this year invested another US$50 million in an American solar-panel maker.
Taiwan has estimated its solar energy industry to be worth up to 200 billion Taiwan dollars by 2020.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2010
