September 23, 2005
The Industrial Development Bureau at the end of September will start accepting applications from domestic and foreign companies for a total of
NTD 20 billion in low-interest financing to be used to fund the establishment of research and development centers in Taiwan. Through this program, the government expects to sign up an additional 40 multinational enterprises over the next five years.
This low-interest financing, with a maximum interest rate of 3.84%, may be applied to the purchase of real estate, equipment and intellectual property rights, and can also be used to cover the operating expenses of
R&D centers. As these loans may be used for the acquisition of land and buildings, a rare move for government financing programs in recent years, it is expected to provide a stimulus to the nation's real estate market.
This financing plan is meant to strengthen the
R&D environment in Taiwan by encouraging both foreign and domestic companies to pursue
R&D in Taiwan. In line with this goal, even companies such as Quanta Computers which have already opened research centers here will be permitted to apply for loans under this program.
Major foreign corporations, among them the world's information technology giants Intel, Hewlett Packard, Dell, Sony, Microsoft and IBM, have set up a total of 23
R&D centers in Taiwan since the government introduced measures to encourage the establishment of
R&D centers in 2002. As for domestic enterprises, to date 64 have opened
R&D centers here. These include the nation's leading
IT firms Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., United Microelectronics, Hon Hai Precision Industry, AU Optronics and Chi Mei Optoelectronics.
Taiwan's government has set a target of raising total
R&D expenditures to 3% of gross domestic product by 2008. Presently,
R&D spending accounts for 2.45% of the nation's
GDP. Due primarily to
R&D conducted by Taiwan's
IT sector, Taiwan consistently ranks among the world's top industrialized countries for the number of patents approved in the United States each year.
(United Daily News)
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