By Mr. Richard Lee, Chairman of TEEMA
Taiwan's Office of Trade Negotiation of Executive Yuan held an online meeting Mr. Michael Regan, Administrator of Environmental Protection Agency （EPA） of the US on June 17. Several industry leaders were invited by the Office of Trade Negotiation to attend the meeting, including Mr. Richard Lee, Chairman of TEEMA. The following is the remark delivered by Chairman Lee at the meeting:
Administrator Mr. Michael Regan,
Minister John Deng,
Minister Chang of EPAT
Representative Hsiao of TECRO
Director Christensen of AIT
Good morning to all distinguished guests in the US and good evening to our government and industrial leaders in Taipei, ladies and gentlemen:
Introducing TEEMA
My name is Richard Lee, Chairman of TEEMA which stands for Taiwan Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers Association.
TEEMA was founded 73 years ago in 1948. With more than 3,000 member companies, we represent and serve all the electrical and electronics manufacturers in Taiwan, in other words, the fully integrated ICT manufacturing industry, from semiconductors, various electronic parts to Smart Phones, PCs and Servers. The total revenues of Taiwan's ICT manufacturing industry account for about one half of Taiwan's industrial output as well as about one half of Taiwan's exports.
TEEMA has undertaken transformation in the past 10+ years to diversify from purely ICT industry to enter into "ICT+" industries, such as "ICT+EV" and "ICT+Bio". This explains why TEEMA has actively participated in the SelectUSA since 2018. For the 2021 SelectUSA which was just held, many TEEMA member companies participated in the Summit and joined in particular the EV （Electric Vehicle） Track and the PPE （Personal Protective Equipment） Track.
Beyond "ICT+", TEEMA member companies have also invested in and entered into the energy industry through providing renewable energies. In the past 10 years, many of our member companies have diversified into providing solar panels and solar power systems. In June 2020, TEEMA's member company Foxwell Energy won a 5-year and 2 billion US dollars contract for the operation and maintenance of the 2nd phase of Taipower's offshore wind farm. It is expected that the grid will be connected in September 2025 and the annual electricity generation will exceed 1 billion kilowatt/hour.
In addition to Foxwell Energy, many TEEMA member companies are actively promoting a full range of renewable energy covering solar photovoltaics, wind power, hydropower to liquefied natural gas, and also developing energy storage devices, energy saving services and a green electricity trading platform.
TEEMA on CSR and ESG
In June 2019, the board of directors of TEEMA unanimously agreed to uphold TEEMA's mission "Developing Environment Sustainability" as the first and foremost priority and to expand our social responsibility （CSR） to include ESG （Environmental, Social and Governance）.
The outbreak of coronavirus in early 2020 with the compounded threat of the climate crisis has quickly driven TEEMA's ESG practices further ahead. In January, arlier this year, TEEMA completed "TEEMA White Paper: A Blueprint for Sustainability Strategy" which urges our member companies to work on solutions for three key concerns :
1） Environmental Concerns through promoting a circular economy;
2） Social Concerns through advocating labor protection, human rights and supply chain management;
3） Corporate Governance Concerns through helping member companies to improve corporate governance.
Taiwan on Renewable Energy and Carbon Neutrality
Taiwan, one of the world's major manufacturing hubs, is now charting a path to becoming a clean energy center in Asia-Pacific. President Tsai met with representatives from Taiwan's 14 environmental groups on April 22, Earth Day. During this meeting she said, "achieving carbon neutrality is a goal that Taiwan shares with the world, and one the country is actively working towards."
The last two years （2019-2020） have marked a significant shift in renewable energy development in Taiwan, largely due to political and corporate leadership. Taiwan has committed to sourcing 20％ of its generated power from renewable energy by 2025, a considerable challenge given that more than 95％ of its energy is imported. In addition to the onshore windfarm and rooftop solar projects which have been developed for years, the offshore windfarm, land solar project, and floating solar project have been developed in the recent years.
If Taiwan reaches 20％ renewable electricity supply by 2025, it would have over double the supply of renewable electricity than is estimated to be needed by the suppliers that year. It's not only the renewable electricity demand of RE100 members that matters, but also that of their supply chains. Known for its electronic, computer and textile manufacturing, Taiwan's OEMs consume large volumes of electricity.
TEEMA is Promoting RE100
The Climate Group and CDP who in partnership initiate RE100 cites Taiwan as one of the most challenging countries to find economical clean power, especially when compared to the global market's cheap grid electricity. Despite the challenge, Taiwan's corporate renewable electricity demand is on the rise. On April 14, RE100 reaches 300-member milestone worldwide. As of today, Taiwan has 11 companies committed to RE100, 5 are ICT companies. TSMC and UMC are on semiconductors, Asus and Acer are on computers, and Delta is the clean and energy efficientsolution provider. TEEMA is promoting RE100 among our member companies and it is expected that more will commit to joining.
Taiwan's shift towards renewable energy over the past few years has been dramatic. Nevertheless, the years ahead will require further support as more companies continue to join RE100 and influence their suppliers to do the same. To retain the local operations of prominent global companies, many of them U.S.-based multinational corporations, Taiwan must increasingly offer renewable energy.
Calling on G7 Governments
Swiss Re Institute, one of funding members of RE100, is calling on G7 governments, who just met in UK, to immediately raise their targets for cutting missions over the next 9 years to reach their fair share of the reduction needed to keep global warming below 1.5 degrees C. The coronavirus pandemic caused the economies of the G7 to shrink by an average of 4.2％ last year. They are expected to bounce back from the short-term effects of the pandemic this year. However, the effects of climate change will be seen every year. The world economy is set to lose up to 18％ GDP from climate change if no action is taken, reveals Swiss Re Institute.
Taiwan Can Help!
Until about one month ago, Taiwan has been known to have properly controlled Covid-19 pandemic. Taiwan is one of the few countries in the world that has maintained positive economic growth since the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic.
On March 18, 2020, Taiwan and the US issued a Joint Statement on a Partnership against Coronavirus, demonstrating a shared determination to combat the pandemic, cooperate on the research and development of vaccines, and share best practices. Since then, Taiwan has donated more than 50 million medical masks and supported frontline medical personnel as they fight the pandemic in more than 80 countries that have been severely affected. Taiwan can help, and Taiwan is helping!
In 2021 till now, Taiwan's economy has enjoyed 5 straight months of strong growth which has reached its highest since May 1987. The ICT industry has been performing well and is continuing to be the driving force of Taiwan's economy.
Just last month, following the sudden outbreak of Covid-19 in Taiwan, Taiwanese lives and businesses have been greatly affected and will continue to suffer in the coming months. Nevertheless, as long as the government is able to keep the situation under control, the impact will be limited to the domestic businesses and will not affect exports and imports.
Time to Act is Now
On January 20, his very first day in the White House, President Biden replaced climate change at the top of his political agenda following Covid-19. In order to completely reverse the previous energy policy and climate change strategy, the US plans to invest 2 trillion US dollars in new green policies. These new green policies will drive the transformation of the US economy, providing the backbone for new strategies in energy, transportation, infrastructure and diplomatic relations, achieving a 100％ clean energy and zero carbon emission economy by 2050.
To echo Minister Deng, I would also like to specially thank Director Christensen of AIT. US-Taiwan relations has progressed significantly since you came to Taiwan in August 2018. Early this year, on February 5, Taiwan and US held their first economic dialogue only 2 weeks after the inauguration of President Biden. More than 100 attendees participated in the on-line conference from both sides.
President Biden's Covid-19 American Rescue Plan has been effectively implemented. US will lead the world back to normal life. It is time to focus on climate change and environmental issues.
Taiwan and as well TEEMA will work together with US to fulfill more than our fair share to step up our efforts in energy conservation and carbon reduction, commit to green products, green manufacturing and recycling, invest in environmental protection and renewable energy, support the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals （SDGs） and work closely with NGOs, actively participating in environmental protection activities, and endorsing government policies and goals.
As Lester Brown of the Worldwatch Institute says, "We have not inherited the earth from our fathers, we are borrowing it from our children." The time to act is now. Taiwan will work with U.S. to jointly protect the earth which we are borrowing from our children.
Thanks to you all.
