Taiwan’s economic and trade relationship with Australia and New Zealand is the best it has ever been, Minister of the National Development Council Kung Ming-hsin (???) said Tuesday.
Bilateral trade between Taiwan and Australia and Taiwan and New Zealand combined reached US$21.4 billion in 2021, Kung said at an event to mark the publication of the 2022 Discussion Paper by the Australia New Zealand Chamber of Commerce (ANZCham) in Taipei.
Kung went on to say investment in Taiwan from Australia and New Zealand from January to October 2022 reached about US$4.1 billion.
According to the paper, bilateral trade between Taiwan and Australia as well as Taiwan and New Zealand “rebounded” in 2021 compared to a year ago, when COVID-19 disrupted trade and economic activity.
The paper said trade between Taiwan and Australia amounted to US$19.6 billion in 2021, representing a year-on-year increase of 73.3 percent.
Meanwhile, trade between Taiwan and New Zealand reached US$1.6 billion, which translated into an increase of 26.4 percent compared to 2020, the paper said.
These statistics demonstrate that the economic and trade relationship between Taiwan and Australia and Taiwan and New Zealand is the best it has ever been, Kung said, adding that he looks forward to seeing the relationships develop in the future.
Australian representative to Taiwan Jenny Bloomfield expressed a similar view, saying “our economic relationship is at a historic high.”
“The discussion paper being launched today provides an important platform for businesses to provide feedback, proposed solutions and make practical suggestions to governments to deepen trade and investment space,” said Bloomfield, whose Australian Office Taipei represents Canberra’s interest in Taipei in the absence of formal diplomatic relations.
“I look forward to continuing to work together to make our economies and peoples more prosperous,” she added.
New Zealand representative to Taiwan Mark Pearson, on the other hand, expressed hope for cooperation between Taiwan and New Zealand on geothermal power.
“I expect there will be a growing need for engagement between business and government in this area in the future … and New Zealand for its part stands ready to share its experience and expertise in developing geothermal power sector with the Taiwanese government,” added Pearson, director of the New Zealand Commerce and Industry Office, which represents Wellington’s interest in Taipei in the absence of diplomatic ties.
In the discussion paper, ANZCham Taipei’s newly established energy committee urged Taiwan’s government to consider establishing a “fluid offtake quota system” to facilitate the development of commercial-sized geothermal projects in Taiwan.
The paper also encouraged the government to adopt an approach for the geothermal power sector whereby it undertakes initially technical feasibility assessments on site before publicly announcing fields for development to the public.
Such an approach, the paper said, has been adopted in the development of the offshore wind power industry in Taiwan and could help reduce some of front-end development risks while ensuring no overlap of ownership that could impact the fields.
Kung said he welcomes collaborations between Taiwan and Australia/New Zealand on the development of geothermal power and other emerging energy solutions.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel