President Tsai Ing-wen receives a Siemens delegation. (Photo courtesy of the Presidential Office)
Taipei, July 26 (CNA) President Tsai Ing-wen expressed hope Wednesday that Germany-based industrial giant Siemens AG will set up a smart machinery research and development (R&D) center in Taiwan to forge closer ties with the local machinery manufacturing sector.
Receiving a Siemens delegation led by Cedrik Neike, a member of the managing board of the German firm, Tsai said that the local machinery industry has been working with the German firm on smart manufacturing development and that a move by the company to set up an R&D center in Taiwan would strengthen that cooperation.
Tsai said that Taiwan's industrial sector has laid a good foundation in information and communication technology development, and she encouraged Siemens to utilize Taiwan's advantages by opening a smart machinery hub here.
Tsai said she is aware that Siemens has put great emphasis on the Taiwan market since Neike, who assumed the post as a director of the company in April, led a delegation to Taiwan just three months after assuming his new position.
Siemens opened a representative office in Taiwan as far back as 1970. Siemens Ltd. Taiwan was established in 1989 and signed a strategic alliance with the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) in 1994.
According to Siemens, about 20 percent of Taiwan's electricity capacity is generated by the German firm's equipment, while the country's power dispatch network also uses the company's energy management system.
Based on such a close relationship, Tsai said, Siemens has grown along with Taiwan's economy over the past half-century, and they have become good partners.
Tsai noted that a smart machinery development office inaugurated by the government in February can integrate resources in both the public and private sectors, leading the local machinery industry into a new era.
In addition, Tsai expressed hope that the government will have a chance to work with Siemens in new energy development at a time when Taiwan has set a goal of raising its renewable energy production.
According to this goal, renewable energy is expected to account for 20 percent of the total electricity generated in Taiwan by the end of 2025, up from the 5.1 percent seen in 2016.
Tsai said that a plan by Siemens to set up an Asia-Pacific offshore wind power turbine development hub in Taiwan by the end of this year is also welcome, adding that the plan is expected to lead to more cooperation with its Taiwanese counterparts, paving the way for them to penetrate the global market.
