Taiwan Industries

Taiwan’s pet food industry has been experiencing robust growth in recent years due to the low Taiwanese birthrate and the increasing importance of pets as family members. Taiwan imported more than US$141M of pet food in 2016. Canada ranked fifth of the exporting countries with total exports in 2016 amounting to $9.7M, accounting for 6.9% of Taiwan’s total imports in this industry.

Canada is the first country to complete system approval negotiations with Taiwan. As of the end of 2017, Canadian pet food companies wishing to export pet food containing meat ingredients are not be subject to lengthy documentation review and costly on-site inspection. Canadian pet food companies approved by CFIA are eligible for exports to Taiwan.

With limited natural energy resources, Taiwan imports over 98% of its energy supply from other countries, so the government strives to increase energy self-reliance.

• Government goal: renewable energy to account for 20% of Taiwan’s electricity by 2025.
• Nuclear-free by 2025
• Green Energy is included in Taiwan government’s Forward-looking Infrastructure Development Program in 2017. A special budget of US$687.1 million is granted for this program.
• The government has committed to ban the sale of fossil fuel-powered motorcycles and cars by 2035 and 2040 respectively.
• Taiwan is the world’s second largest producer of solar cells and one of the leading solar wafer and module makers.
• Taiwan annual PV production value was US $6.8 billion in 2016 and the estimated investment increased for 20GW target by 2025: US$38.7 billion.

Business/Investment opportunities:

• Environmental/geotechnical survey, analysis and engineering.
• Solar project development and investment.
• Smart technology for energy saving and management.
• Other renewable energy technology. For example: biogas, geothermal and hydropower.

Taiwan’s rapid economic growth and urbanization contribute to the increase of waste production. One of the biggest challenges is the result of damages to soil, land, water and air by industries such as the semiconductor and petrochemical sectors. It is also crucial for Taiwan to effectively manage its natural resources due to their scarcity in a challenging geographical landscape.

Water resources and aquatic environments are listed on the Forward-looking Infrastructure Development Program for 2017-2024. US $8.3 billion will be invested to solve current issues. The objective is to prioritize solutions and responses to challenges such as water provision, flood prevention, and water-related infrastructure build up. The Water Resources Agency plans to invest US$503.8 million and construct six water treatment plants by 2020.

Taiwan’s Ministry of Economic Affairs passed the “Reclaimed Water Resources Development Act” which strives to increase the amount of reclaimed water used by industries. The targeted reusable water goal is 1.32 million CMD (cubic meter/day) by 2031, which is 10 percent of the nation’s public water supply.

Business/Investment opportunities:
• Wastewater management, water conserving products, water leakage prevention products/technologies, water management/consultancy, soil and groundwater remediation.

Taiwan has a vibrant and comprehensive biotechnology industry cluster, which the government has listed it as one of its national priority sectors. Numerous resources have been devoted to its development, including applied biotechnology, medical devices, and pharmaceuticals, as well as to the creation of an infrastructure and regulatory framework conducive to the biomedical industry. The government has set a target of launching: 20 new drugs, more than 80 medical devices and supports, and at least 10 flagship brands in the global markets by 2025.

Taiwan's biotech industry market value has reached TWD $900 billion (US $30 billion) and will soon approach its first trillion TWD as Taiwan becomes an integral part of the global biopharma industry chain. In 2016, the total biotechnology industry revenue reached almost US$ 9.7 billion in which the medical device subsector accounted for 44.9% with revenue of US$ 4.4 billion. The 2016 import and export values were US$ 7.1 billion and US$3.7 billion, respectively.

Taiwan is undergoing a boom in biotechnology, rewarding years of dedicated effort from its stakeholders. Taiwan industry’s strength in product commercialization and manufacturing also applies to its biotechnology sector. Additionally, this sector offers active and innovative R&D activities. The abundant biotechnology personnel with firsthand knowledge of European, US and Asian markets makes Taiwan an ideal partner for entering into international markets, especially within the Asia region. In addition, Taiwan’s strong background in precision processing manufacturing and ICT makes it competitive in medical device product development including dental equipment and precision healthcare applications.

Taiwan’s domestic biotech market demand reached TWD $421.7 billion (approximately US $14.3 billion) in 2016 and is a major market for U.S. medical device exports. The 2015 medical device market in Taiwan grew to approximately US$3.5 billion. Business Monitor International expects that the Taiwan medical device market will continue to grow by 7.7% from 2014-2019. Taiwan’s medical device market is ranked among the top 25 in the world in terms of value.

Taiwan’s medical device market is supplied by imports: The U.S holds 1/3 of market share 31.1%, follow by Japan 16.8% and Germany 8.9% in 2017. Dental Equipment and materials is a major part of the medical device industry and had a production value of NT$141.5 billion (about US $4.7 billion) in 2016.

Business/Investment opportunities:
• Co-development/joint research for new drug developments, clinical trails
• Regulatory approval consultancy and high import demand for high-end medical devices.

Taiwan boasts a unique blend of highly-concentrated and diverse industrial clusters; including semiconductor, electronic, hardware and software. The government is working toward upgrading the industry to become the Asia Silicon Valley, a base for young innovators and entrepreneurs.

• The government approved “Asia Silicon Valley Development Plan on September 9, 2016 to connect Taiwan with high-tech R &D communities worldwide and seize opportunities in next-generation industries.
• The plan focuses on promoting research and development for IoT and strengthening collaboration with Silicon Valley and other global innovation clusters.
• Taiwan is the world’s seventh largest machine tool producer, with an annual production value of US $4 billion, accounting for a 5-6% share of the global market.
• The government approved "Smart Machinery Industry Promotion Plan" in 2016 with the goal of developing smart machinery applications by combining the advantages of Taiwan's machinery, ICT industries and commercialization capability.
• Between 2017-2020, US $70 billion will be invested in the Central Taiwan Science Park and Southern Taiwan Science Park to establish an intelligent robot self-manufacturing site.

Business/Investment opportunities:

• Connect with “Asia Silicon Valley IoT Alliance” to collaborate with Taiwan domestic manufacturers to stimulate a new mode of cooperation.
• Research firms and manufacturers can engage in joint R&D ventures and or technology transfer.
• Demand for AI talents/Training.