Wells, desalination plant to tackle water shortageBUILT IN ADVANCE: The emergency wells would contribute 336,000 tonnes of water daily and the desalination plant 200,000 tonnes, the economics minister saidBy Angelica Oung / Staff reporterThe Ministry of Economic Affairs has deployed 159 emergency wells and created an emergency desalinization plant to tackle a difficult water shortage the nation is facing, Deputy Minister of Economic Affairs Tseng Wen-sheng (曾文生) said yesterday. By early next month, the emergency wells would be contributing 336,000 tonnes of water daily and the emergency desalinization plant in Hsinchu County would be contributing 200,000 tonnes, he said. The water level in the lake has been falling as a result of supplying water to rice farms in Changhua and Yunlin counties, the Water Resource Agency said. Areas on yellow alert have their water pressure reduced and the public is encouraged to conserve water, while an orange alert entails limiting total water use as well as reducing the water pressure. The emergency wells were dug years in advance, Water Resource Agency Deputy Director-General Wang Yi-feng (王藝峰) said by telephone.

Hualien Archeological Museum ‘an inspiration’By Wang Chun-chi and Kayleigh Madjar / Staff reporter, with staff writerThe Hualien Archeological Museum opened to the public on Sunday, giving a permanent home to 800,000 artifacts, including a 1,240kg stone trough considered the pride of the museum and a jade burial pendant that inspired its logo design. To house the museum, the Hualien County Government received a NT$72 million (US$2.54 million) grant from the Ministry of Culture to renovate Shoufeng Township’s (壽豐鄉) Fengtien Market (豐田市場), which was originally built in 1984. A 1,240kg stone trough, discovered at the Yuemei archeological site in Shoufeng Township, is pictured in an undated photograph. It is one of the main attractions at the Hualien Archeological Museum, which opened on Sunday. The Hualien County Cultural Affairs Bureau said that entry is free during the soft opening, while operating hours are Wednesday through Sunday from 9am to 5pm.

Hotels report a surge in room, dining cancelationsBy Hsiao Yu-hsin, Tsai Tsung-hsien and Wang Shan-yan / Staff reportersExcept for Taitung, hoteliers across the nation have reported an increase in cancelations of room and dining reservations during the first weekend of the winter break, as the COVID-19 outbreak at the Taoyuan General Hospital spreads. Hotels near the Alishan National Forest Recreation Area in Chiayi County also saw their booking rate fall by 20 percent during the same period. Hotels in Taoyuan bore the brunt of the losses, as people have called to cancel room and restaurant reservations. Most of the cancelations were for reservations for days before Lunar New Year’s Eve, Taoyuan Hotel Association chairman Chiu Chao-ching (邱照進) said. “Group travelers mainly stay in three-star hotels, whereas independent travelers mostly stay in five-star hotels.

Group calls for better oversight of school mealsENOUGH NUTRITION? Members of the National Alliance of Presidents of Parents’ Associations hold a news conference in Taipei yesterday. This is because part of the costs are spent on labor, rent, utilities and equipment, it said. The alliance suggested drafting a law dedicated to the regulation of school lunch programs to introduce national standards and guarantee food safety. More food-safety officials and nutritionists are also needed at schools to supervise the quality of the ingredients and the preparation of meals, it said.

Fifteen people have so far tested positive in the cluster infection. The first case in the cluster (case No. Chen on Sunday evening said that more than 5,000 people linked to the hospital cluster are expected to be put in isolation. Chen said the number of people placed under home isolation is expected to increase, as contact tracing is still being conducted. People under isolation, quarantine or self-health management linked to the hospital cluster are encouraged to consult with emergency doctors through the CECC’s mobile app launched on Sunday if they feel discomfort, he said.

Gudeng forecasts record revenue growth this yearBy Lisa Wang / Staff reporter, in TainanGudeng Precision Industrial Co Ltd (家登), the sole supplier of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) pods to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), yesterday forecast record, double-digit percentage revenue growth for this year. Gudeng’s comments came after TSMC on Jan. 14 forecast quarterly revenue growth of up to 2.52 percent, bucking a seasonal lull in the January-to-March quarter. Gudeng also supplies pods to Intel Corp.EUV pods are to make up about 60 percent of its wafer pods, up from 50 percent last year, Chiu said. Gudeng expects a double-digit percentage increase in revenue this year from NT$2.5 billion (US$88.06 million) last year, as its major customer accelerates production of 5-nanometer chips, which require more EUV pods than 7-nanometer production. “Order visibility from Chinese customers is stronger in the second quarter,” Gudeng said in a statement.

School facilities will not be available for winter camps or any other activities, such as volunteer group or student club meetings, Cheng said, after the city on Sunday recorded two more cases in the COVID-19 cluster that started at Taoyuan General Hospital. Workers sanitize plastic screens and furniture inside the employee canteen at Taoyuan City Hall yesterday. Photo courtesy of the Taoyuan City Government via CNAThe 5,000 include patients who were discharged from the hospital from Jan. 6 to 19, and their close contacts, the CECC said. City government officials said that most of the 5,000 are people who live in Taoyuan, with an estimated 500 in New Taipei City, more than 40 in Taipei and two in Keelung. Hon Hai said that employees at its Taoyuan factory have been advised to avoid traveling outside the city, and that it has suspended its shuttle bus service between its factories nationwide.

CECC details sites visited by cases 889, 890PRECAUTION: The center urged people who have visited these places to practice self-health management and see a doctor if they feel sickBy Lee I-chia / Staff reporterThe Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday released the names of five public spaces that two previously confirmed COVID-19 cases had visited from Tuesday last week to Saturday. “People who have visited these places at about the same time should practice self-health management,” Chen said. A worker sprays disinfectant outside the Bade District Civil Affairs Office in Taoyaun yesterday. Photo: Chen En-huei, Taipei TimesOn Sunday, Chen also published a more specific time frame for when a previously confirmed patient (case No. 882) who visited Taoyuan’s Jhongping Night Market (仲平黃昏市場) last week — between 4:40pm and 5:10pm on Tuesday, and between 4pm and 4:20pm on Wednesday.

NSPO names its new director-generalPASSION FOR ROCKETS: As head of the NSPO, Gou Chong-sin is to focus on building a rocket launch site. NSPO Director-General Lin Chun-liang (林俊良), who assumed office on Feb. 1, 2018, has said that he plans to return to his research position at National Chung Hsing University next month. Taiwan should be able to launch satellites on its own, instead of relying on foreign rocket suppliers, Gou has said. Gou would make great contributions, with his outstanding research achievements and his understanding of the “ecology” of the NSPO, he added. Before Gou’s appointment, NSPO Deputy Director-General Yu Shiann-jen (余憲政) is to serve as acting head.

Agencies to list China-made gearSURVEILLANCE: Local government agencies that fail to list all of the China-made information security products that they use would be asked to explain their conductBy Lee Hsin-fang / Staff reporterCentral and local government agencies have been ordered to list all of the China-made information security products they are using by the end of this month and replace them by the end of this year as part of the government’s efforts to prevent the leaking of sensitive government information, Executive Yuan officials said yesterday. However, a comprehensive survey is needed to identify the agencies that are using computers and information security products manufactured in China that have yet to reach retirement age, they added. On Dec. 18 last year, the Executive Yuan sent an official document to government agencies nationwide on the principles of handling information and communication security products. All government agencies have been asked to make a list of Chinese information and communication products that are still in use or have been purchased. The Executive Yuan has yet to decide if public school teachers would be banned from using China-made smartphones or connecting their smartphones to government systems, as some teachers have expressed reservations about the policy.

New Intel CEO commits to manufacturingFOCUS ON FOUNDRIES: An analyst said that some investors would be disappointed because they were expecting a larger announcement of a partnership with TSMC Intel Corp’s incoming chief executive officer Pat Gelsinger on Thursday pledged to regain the company’s lead in chip manufacturing, countering growing calls from some investors to shed that part of its business. “I am confident that the majority of our 2023 products will be manufactured internally,” Gelsinger said. “At the same time, given the breadth of our portfolio, it’s likely that we will expand our use of external foundries for certain technologies and products.” He plans to provide more details after officially taking over the CEO role on Feb. 15, but Gelsinger was clear that Intel is sticking with its once mighty

TAITRA plans electric vehicle showBy Angelica Oung / Staff reporterTaiwan’s electric vehicle (EV) industry has “three years left” to build its own brand, Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA, 外貿協會) chairman James Huang (黃志芳) said at a news conference in Taipei yesterday, announcing that the council is to hold an electro-mobility trade show in October. “We are looking ahead to 2035 because that is when many countries will be phasing out fossil fuel vehicles,” Huang said. Photo: Lin Jing-hua, Taipei TimesThe council’s goal is to encourage local firms to build a “connected ecosystem centered on EV and autonomous-driving technology,” Huang said. The first edition of the 2035 E-Mobility Taiwan Show would help to spark that development and feature local manufacturers and “international investors from Wall Street and Silicon Valley,” he said. The government must support the EV industry in the same way it supported the semiconductor industry in the past,” he said.

Help promised for Taiwanese if ailed by Chinese vaccineBy Chen Yu-fu and Jonathan Chin / Staff reporter, with staff writerTaiwan would provide medical assistance to people if complications arise from taking Chinese-made COVID-19 vaccines, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. “No Taiwanese businesspeople wanted to get that vaccine,” a source told the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) on condition of anonymity. “China makes forms that Taiwanese businesspeople have to fill out. Taiwanese working in China should weigh the risk of vaccines carefully and take all precautions to protect their health, he said. When asked whether the government would set up a “travel bubble” for the Lunar New Year holiday for people who have received a Chinese vaccine, Chiu said: “This is not the time to think about” traveling.

Hualien County and TRA sign MOU to develop two sitesBy Shelley Shan / Staff reporterThe Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) and the Hualien County Government yesterday signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to develop properties surrounding the Hualien Railway Station and Dongdameng Night Market (東大門夜市) in Hualien City. Taiwan Railways Administration Director General Chang Cheng-yuan, seated left, and Hualien County Commissioner Hsu Cheng-wei, seated right, pose yesterday in Hualien City with other officials after the signing of memorandum of understanding to develop properties near the Hualien Railway Station and Dongdameng Night Market. The project is the largest development project in the county, and it would help turn the properties into gateways for international tourists, the TRA said. “The Hualien Railway Station will become more than just a transportation hub. Hualien County Commissioner Hsu Cheng-wei (徐榛蔚) said the partnership would boost business activities in the county and create a new industrial chain there.

Rise in construction costs slows presale price trendBy Crystal Hsu / Staff reporterPresale housing project prices gained modestly across northern Taiwan last quarter due to higher construction costs, with healthy demand and low interest rates also lending support, the Chinese-language Housing Monthly (住展雜誌) reported yesterday. While Yilan is popular among tourists, it is less attractive for housing investment due to long travel times to Taipei, Ho said. Presale housing prices in Keelung saw a 2.4 percent increase quarterly and yearly to a record of NT$216,000 per ping, spurred by upscale housing projects, Ho said. In Taipei, presale housing prices increased 1.1 percent quarter-on-quarter to NT$886,000 per ping, or 4.5 percent annually, he said. Housing prices in New Taipei City rose 1 percent to NT$407,000 per ping, or 3.8 percent annually, Ho said.