Foxconn, a Taiwan-funded company, has announced its plan to
invest US$?1 billion over the next three years to produce
electronics in Qinhuangdao, a coastal city on the Chinese
mainland.
Terry Gou, president of Hon Hai Precision, a shareholder in
Foxconn Group, said the money would be spent on building an
industrial park in the Beidaihe district of Qinhuangdao, in north
China's Hebei Province.
The park, covering an area of 317 hectares, will be home to a
cluster of factories that manufacture electronics, including
printed circuit boards and signal transmitters, and nano-technology
research and development centers.
The establishment of the park will create 35,000 job
opportunities, Gou said, adding that the Qinhuangdao industrial
park was the 16th industrial base that the Hon Hai group had set up
on the mainland since 1998.
In February this year, Foxconn kicked off a 99 million-dollar
project in Langfang City, also in Hebei Province, as part of the
Taiwan company's strategy to move its production base from eastern
coastal areas to the north and northeastern inland regions.
Gou said the fast-growing economy on the mainland had created
business opportunities in many industrial fields for Taiwan
companies.
He said the expansion of its mainland operations had been the
spur for Foxconn's growth, doubling the company's revenue last
year.
The Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd, is the largest private
enterprise in Taiwan and is among the world's leading manufacturer
of connectors and cable assemblies.
Terry Gou is ranked 142nd on the 2007 Forbes list of the world's
richest people, with a fortune of US$ 5.5 billion.
(Xinhua News Agency July 24 2007)