News: Suppliers
27 October 2020
UK’s CSA Catapult and Taiwan’s ITRI sign MoU
During a virtual visit to Taiwan on 21-22 October to further develop the UK-Taiwan trade relationship, the UK Minister for Trade Policy Greg Hands launched the UK-Taiwan International Showcase for Compound Semiconductor Technology, featuring nine UK businesses pitching to a virtual audience of 200 potential collaborators and investors.
With Taiwan described as the UK’s key international partner for semiconductor technology collaboration, the UK’s not-for-profit Compound Semiconductor Applications (CSA) Catapult (based in South Wales) and the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) of HsinChu, Taiwan signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to further deepen the exchange.
Hands also said that a new initiative between the UK’s Economic and Social Research Council and Taiwan’s Ministry for Science and Technology will launch on 3 November with a call for research proposals, with initial funding of £500,000.
UK-Taiwan bilateral trade rose to £7.1bn in 2019, making Taiwan the UK’s 7th largest trading partner in the Asia-Pacific region. In 2019, Taiwan invested £64.2m in the UK, making the UK Taiwan’s most popular investment destination in Europe. More than 300 UK firms are present in Taiwan and there are over 180 Taiwanese firms in the UK.
“I was delighted to co-chair for the third time the 23rd annual UK-Taiwan trade talks,” comments Hands. “Taiwan offers huge opportunities for UK businesses to offer their products, services and expertise in a number of fields... This year’s trade talks underlined the growing importance of the UK-Taiwan trade and investment relationship in areas including education, science and innovation,” he adds.
“ITRI is one of the world-leading research institutes in semiconductors and was a case study back in 2010 when Hermann Hauser made his recommendations for technology and innovation centers which became the Catapult Network,” comments Innovate UK’s deputy executive chair & chief business officer Simon Edmonds. “It is important for our network to collaborate with the best in the world, and we look forward to seeing the exciting collaborations between the Catapult and ITRI,” he adds.
“This MoU signifies a closer working relationship, advancing semiconductor research between two world-leading organizations,” notes CSA Catapult’s chief technology officer & acting CEO Martin McHugh. “Together we look forward to developing the advanced electronic products of the future, while forging long-lasting business relationships.”
Oxford Instruments boosting Asia-Pacific R&D center at Taiwan’s ITRI
