China, Taiwan team up to boost LEDs

China and Taiwan announced plans to develop joint standards for LED products in order to strengthen their positions in the market.

Taiwan has the world's second largest LED industry with a 20 percent share of the global market, after Japan with 37 percent, according to LEDinside (see Taiwan's LED market heats up).

But Taiwan and China plan to join forces to establish a certification system to stave off competition from Japan, South Korea, Germany and the U.S.

"China has spared no efforts in subsidizing its LED and illumination industry, and that has prompted low-price competition with Taiwan," said Chou Ming-chun, general manager of Epistar, Taiwan's leading LED maker, to the Taipei Times. "Cooperating with China would help local industries explore the Chinese market."

Just last week, Taiwan announced plans to spend NT$45 billion (US $1.3 billion) in the next five years on subsidies and research and development of clean energy to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and create jobs. The funds include NT$25 billion for solar power, light-emitting diodes, wind power, biofuels, hydrogen energy and fuel cells, and electric cars (see Cleantech upgrades the industrial sector).

Taiwan's government is alo adopting LEDs, with plans to change all its 700,000 traffic lights to LEDs by 2011.