Invest in TaiwanDepartment of Investment Services, MOEA
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Taiwan's concerted policy efforts to develop research, development and production capabilities in the biotech sector have paid off in creating a wealth of investment opportunities. Biotech research at Taiwan's top academic institutions is gaining international attention, while development capabilities, fostered through joint industry and government support, are turning these research achievements into commercially viable products. Taiwan's mature production and logistics capabilities, evidenced by its over 200 cGMP-awarded pharmaceutical manufacturers, have been widely recognized as powerhouses in this area.
The Biotechnology and Pharmaceutical Industries Program Office, part of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, has put forward the following definitions:
"Biotechnology is a set of powerful tools that employ living organisms or parts of organisms to make or modify products, improve plants or animals, or develop microorganisms for specific uses. Examples of this new 'biotechnology' include industrial use of recombinant DNA, cell fusion, and novel bioprocessing."
It is generally understood in Taiwan as "the application of technological principles in life sciences."
Using this definition, "biotechnology" includes the pharmaceutical industry. Furthermore, because of its ethnic Chinese heritage, Taiwan's pharmaceutical industry has always included the Chinese medicine industry. In fact, many manufacturers of Western pharmaceuticals in Taiwan are also producing Chinese medicinal ingredients and formulations. Similarly, many new biotech start-ups are conducting research on modern medical uses of traditional Chinese herbs and medicines.
The island's biotech industry has experienced 12% average annualized growth during 2001-2005. In 2005, the industry generated revenues nearly US$5 billion (NTD 160 billion), and this is estimated to have risen by 11% to US$5.5 billion (NTD 177 billion) in 2006. Over US$625 million (NTD 20 billion) of investment has been funneled into the industry annually since 2001, with investment in 2005 exceeding US$791 million (NTD 25.3 billion).
Of the total annual revenue for the biotech industries in Taiwan in 2005, US$1.21 billion came from biotechnology by 253 companies, each with an average revenue of US$4.8 million. The business scope of these companies includes genomics, drugs, diagnostics, agricultural biotechnology, environmental biotechnology, protein drugs, contract research organizations, biochips and bioinformatics. The island's pharmaceutical industry earned US$1.95 billion, with 419 companies active in this sector, averaging US$4.7 million per company. The medical devices industry earned US$1.84 billion, coming from 484 companies, with an average revenue of US$3.8 million each. The biotechnology workforce size is 38,085 persons, of which 8,090 are in the biotechnology industry, 14,995 in the pharmaceutical industry and 15,000 working in the medical devices industry.
| Industry | Biotechnology | Pharmaceutical | Medical devices | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue* | 1.21 | 1.95 | 1.84 | 5 |
| Number of manufacturers | 253 | 419 | 484 | 1,156 |
| Size of work force (number) | 8,090 | 14,995 | 15,000 | 38,085 |
| Export value* | 0.48 | 0.36 | 0.84 | 1.68 |
| Import value* | 0.50 | 1.80 | 1.23 | 3.54 |
| Domestic sales vs. export | 60:40 | 82:18 | 54:46 | 66:34 |
| Domestic market demand* | 1.23 | 3.39 | 2.23 | 6.86 |
Having established a solid foundation, the Taiwan government has designated the biotechnology industry for further development into a key industry in its Two Trillion, Twin Stars Plan and Challenge 2008 National Development Plan. Through the combined efforts of government, academia, research and industrial sectors, Taiwan is poised to become a major hub and logistics operations center for R&D, manufacturing, and operations in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries within the Asia-Pacific region. The government's plans to promote the industry include achieving targets of NT$150 billion (US$4.34 billion) in investments and 25% annual revenue growth by 2008 and five hundred biotech-related companies within ten years.
Industry, institutions and government bodies all follow developmental guidelines as set forth in the Promotion Plan for the Biotechnology Industry. This document, a road map defining national industry goals and clearly detailing the corresponding action steps required to get there, was first written and released by the Executive Yuan branch of the government in 1995, and has been revised biannually ever since.
A major aspect of the Promotion Plan is that it has identified specific areas in need of attention to upgrade not only the local biotech industry but also to enhance the investment attraction of Taiwan to the overseas life science community. These five areas of attention are as follows:
In compiling the Promotion Plan, Taiwan's strengths and capabilities were examined and a number of industry objectives were decided on. These include the following four major goals:
A new initiative announced in June 2005, the Bio-Tech Island Project is a five-year, interdisciplinary technology integration program. The three main features of the Bio-Tech Island Project are the National Health Information Project (NHIP), Taiwan Biobank, and a clinical trial and research system. Together, these initiatives are expected to raise the standards of Taiwan’s life sciences and clinical research sectors, so as to solidify the vertical integration of the health care industry and create an environment for companies to reach international standards in their development.
Taiwan has 18 medical centers that conduct clinical trials, all of which meet international ICH-GCP guidelines. These centers are located near major population centers, which make a sufficient number of patients available for large-scale clinical trials. In 2002-2004, multinational pharmaceutical companies carried out over 600 sites for clinical trials in Taiwan, far surpassing Singapore, China, Korea, and Japan
TaiGen, established in May 2001 and specializing in the development of cancer and anti-inflammation medicines, has attracted initial investment of US$37 million from some of the world's biggest investors, such as MPM Capital and Japanese Hujizawa Pharmaceutical. The company has also formed a joint venture with Arena Pharmaceuticals to carry out development on new GPCR drugs and licensing in potential early stage medicines to increase its product lines.
Earning its recognition and position as Wyeth Asia Operation and Management Center, Wyeth Taiwan intends to invest US$500 million over a period of five years to expand its Hsinchu plant and enhance processing technology for its renowned product, Jelly Injection Reagent. The completion of this investment project is expected to double output of this product. Wyeth Taiwan has also been awarded the CEO Prize by its parent company, Wyeth USA, in January 2003.
Aside from establishing the first Asian biotech R&D center in Taiwan, IBM Life Sciences Center of Excellence (LSCE), IBM is also working with some of Taiwan's top research organizations such as Academia Sinica, Yun-ming University, and the Institute for Information Industry. IBM expects to invest US$2.9 million in Taiwan over the next three years as part of its plans to build up bio-informatics databanks in several countries. Bio-informatics is seen as being able to significantly speed up production and distribution of biotech products and shortening R&D cycles.
Dutch biotechnology firm Crucell announced in March 2007 that it will take a 20 percent equity stake in Taiwan's ADImmune Corp., which will use Crucell's influenza technology to develop flu vaccines. ADImmune is the only cGMP human vaccine manufacturer in Taiwan. ADImmune already uses Crucell's PER.C6 technology for its Japanese encephalitis virus vaccine, and with its new partner, the company now has the opportunity to supply antigens for European and other markets for Crucell's Inflexal V. The deal is considered significant for Taiwan's vaccine industry, which has enjoyed a resurgence of late due to the high profile of public health scares such as SARS and bird flu and subsequent government efforts to push for self sufficiency in vaccine production and supply.
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