With reportedly the highest density or distribution per-unit-area of motor scooters globally, Taiwan continues to develop green-energy powered two-wheelers (PTWs) to reduce carbon footprint of the ubiquitous commuter vehicles on the island. A departure from the typical efforts that might help s

To meet increasing demand among short-distance urban commuters in major cities of Taiwan, China Motor Corp. (CMC), the maker of its own line of e-moving electric scooters based in Taiwan, recently launched the e-moving Bobe, an upgraded, lightweight e-scooter with portable lithium-ion battery pack

At the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) held in January 2015 in Las Vegas, Gogoro, a young and innovative Taiwanese company targeting to transform energy distribution and management in megacities, unveiled the world’s first high-performance, zero emissions, two-wheeled electric vehicle, the Gogoro S

Buses have been playing a vital role in public transportation in metropolitan areas, but such vehicle has been facing challenges in cutting fuel consumption and reducing carbon emissions. An answer is now emerging as the extended range electric vehicle (EREV) concept gains traction in a variety of

The rapidly changing market for electric vehicles (EVs), including hybrids (HEVs), plug-in hybrids (PHEVs), and battery electric vehicles (BEVs), is a small but growing part of the global automotive industry. Keen to see increasing usage of EVs due to environmental, economic, and energy-security be

Technicians of the Automotive Research & Testing Center (ARTC), a transportation vehicle testing and R&D body in Taiwan, and Shanghai Motor Vehicle Inspection Center (SMVIC), a national-level integrated motor vehicle inspection body in China, met for the second time in Taiwan at a technical forum h

Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI), an industrial technology R&D body in Taiwan, recently signed an exclusive licensing agreement with Taiwan Mitsui Chemicals, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mitsui Chemicals Inc. of Japan, allowing it to manufacture and distribute ITRI’s STOBA (Sel

Yulon Group, a major automobile manufacturing/sales conglomerate in Taiwan, recently started selling its own Luxgen line of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) in the domestic market. To make the BEV, the M7 EV+, more popularly priced, Yulon directly sells the vehicle and provides battery-leasing serv

By QUINCY LIANG Chang Hong Co., Ltd. is positioning to become the the world's largest producer of lithium iron phosphate oxide (LFPO) high energy-density power cells. Company chairman Chen Ming-der recently announced that his firm started mass producing the cells in May, 2014, and the company's

The Executive Yuan (Cabinet) recently issued a green light to a new subsidy program to encourage adoption of eco-friendly electric scooters (e-scooters) in Taiwan. The program will be effective from October 1, 2014, to the end of 2018. Small/light e-scooters purchased during that time will be elig

By KEN LIU From the very first day of Just Power Integrated Technology Inc.’s founding in 2009, the company's president, Ching Yang, has clung to the idea of incorporating only useful and handy designs into the company’s LED lighting fixtures, which are all for indoor use. The firm's initial

Hon Hai Group of Taiwan, a major EMS (electronics manufacturing services) provider globally, will continue to invest in Shanxi Province of China to aggressively develop the EV (electric vehicle) business, said group chairman Terry Guo, at the 2014 World Jin-Merchant Convention in Shanxi recently, a

Hon Hai Precision Ind. Co., Ltd., one of the world's leading providers of electronics manufacturing services and the largest private manufacturer in Taiwan, recently announced plans to invest in the Chongqing Yuanchuang Technology&Research Industrial Development Co., a Chinese tooling developer th

By MICHELLE HSU China and Germany reached an agreement on cooperation in the field of electric vehicles and will unify their electric vehicle (EV) charging interface standards, indicating the increasingly close ties between the two countries in the EV field. German Chancellor Angela Merke

By MICHELLE HSU The rapid growth of new-energy vehicle applications in China has attracted Taiwanese investors from related industries to set up factories in industrial development zones in Fujian Province, China’s nearest province to Taiwan. On May 18, Taiwan’s Hi-Genius Power Inc., a li

Formosa Plastic Group (FPG), a major petrochemical conglomerate in Taiwan, recently announced that Wilfred Wang, one of the FPG's 9-member decision-making team and chairman of Nan Ya Photonics Inc., will lead a delegation to visit major European automakers to promote its self-developed lithium-io

With consumers in North America and Europe spending increasing amounts of time in their gardens, the outlook for the garden tool and equipment market is bright. The shopping lists of gardeners, as well as for wholesalers and retailers wanting to take advantage of the business opportunities inher

One of the most important factors transforming the global automotive industry is vehicle electrification. Electric vehicles (EVs) are rapidly driving up demand for lithium-ion power cells, and gradually eating market share of traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) counterparts. The advance

Delta Electronics, Inc. of Taiwan, the world's largest supplier of power supply units, recently launched its smart energy storage systems in France, and plans to integrate also the Smart Grid and Photovoltaics (PV) related applications in the future. Delta has begun small-batch deliveries of energy

At his company's annual shareholders meeting, Elon Musk, co-founder, CEO, and product architect of American electric-car maker Tesla Motors Inc., reported that Tesla is expanding its cooperation with the Hon Hai Precision Ind. Co. of Taiwan, a world-leading EMS (electronics manufacturing services)

Delta Electronics Inc. of Taiwan, a major maker of power supply products that has been aggressively developing new-energy businesses, recently announced having concluded an agreement with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) of Japan to acquire the partner's business assets, including machinery,

By QUINCY LIANG To present R&D achievements in recent years to global visitors, as well as attract more participants in joint development of automotive technologies, the Taiwan Automotive Research Consortium (TARC), a key automotive industry alliance formed by domestic research institutes and

Thanks to increasingly strong global demand for lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery cathode materials, Mechema Chemicals International Corp. of Taiwan recently said that all its five cathode-material production lines are running at full capacity with order visibility throughout May. Mechema is a major

By QUINCY LIANG The 22 winners of the 2014 International Bicycle Design Competition (IBDC 2014) were announced at Taipei CYCLE, held in Taipei on March 5-8, 2014 in Taipei. The 10 best entries were rewarded with prize money amounting to a total of NT$760,000 (approximately US$25,333 or 19,000 eur

Teco Group, a leading electro-mechanical and home-appliance conglomerate in Taiwan, recently announced having landed orders for special-purpose electric vehicles (EV), from the largest fleet operator in Manila, capital of the Philippines, for 14- and 21-seat electric jeepneys, the most popular mean

Global sales of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs)–including plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) and battery electric vehicles (BEVs)–increased by about 40% in 2013 to top 210,000 units. The biggest markets for such environment-friendly transportation vehicles were the United States (96,000 unit

Terry Gou, chairman of Hon Hai Precision Ind. Co. Ltd. of Taiwan, one of the world's largest EMS (electronics manufacturing services) provider, recently pointed out that Taichung, central Taiwan, has potential to form an electric vehicle (EV) industry cluster. Gou made the statement at his group

Amita Technologies Inc., a major Taiwanese maker of lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries, recently announced that it had signed a 158.6 million renminbi (RMB, or Chinese yuan) agreement to sell a whole plant to the Beijing General Research Institute for Nonferrous Metal (GRINM), China's foremost authorit

By QUINCY LIANG David Shen, chairman of Hota Industrial Manufacturing Co., Ltd. recently told the Economic Daily News (EDN), the largest Chinese-language economic daily newspaper in Taiwan, that his company is the sole supplier of reduction (speed reducer) gearboxes to American premium electric-ca

China Steel Chemical Corporation (CSCC) of Taiwan, a major petrol-chemical processor, recently expressed optimism towards the future of the automotive-application battery market, though the firm currently supplies anode materials to lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery makers for mainly 3C (computer, commu