Image: Reuters Berita 24 English - Taiwan, a semiconductor powerhouse, will undertake high-level trade negotiations with the European Unio...
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| Image: Reuters |
Berita 24 English - Taiwan, a semiconductor powerhouse, will undertake high-level trade negotiations with the European Union on Thursday, according to a source familiar with the situation, as part of the EU's deliberate effort to bolster its chip industry.
The EU introduced a European Chips Act in February, naming Taiwan, which is home to the world's largest contract chipmaker, TSMC, and other key semiconductor companies, as one of the "like-minded partners" with whom Europe wants to collaborate.
According to the source, Taiwan's economics minister, Wang Mei-hua, would undertake virtual talks with a senior EU trade official on Thursday evening. The source was not authorized to speak to the media and hence declined to be identified.
The insider did not go into further detail.
Valdis Dombrovskis is the EU's trade commissioner.
Wang told reporters late Wednesday in Taipei that Taiwan-EU relations are deepening and that negotiations at all levels are ongoing.
She declined to provide specifics, indicating that if she had anything to say, she would do so when the time was right.
Taiwan's government has stated that it feels there is "enormous" space for semiconductor collaboration with the EU.
The EU conference will take place a day after the US announced the start of new trade discussions with Taiwan.
According to the European strategy, the European Commission should make it easier for innovative semiconductor facilities to get finance. Over the last year or more, a global chip scarcity and supply chain bottlenecks have wreaked havoc on numerous businesses.
TSMC has stated that it is still in the early stages of evaluating a prospective European fab. In the United States, the corporation is investing $12 billion in semiconductor facilities.
In a setback for EU ambitions, Taiwan's GlobalWafers Co Ltd failed in its effort to buy German chip producer Siltronic for 4.35 billion euros ($4.64 billion) in February.
Although neither the EU nor its member states have formal diplomatic relations with China's claimed Taiwan, the union has been eager to show its support for the island, particularly as relations between China and the EU have deteriorated due to economic and human rights concerns.
Taiwan has also pushed for a bilateral investment treaty with the European Union. (1 dollar Equals 0.9384 euros)
