C Shivakumar @ CHENNAI:
Taiwanese investors are looking beyond Chennai and Sriperumbudur's established industrial belt, with southern Tamil Nadu emerging as a potential destination for the state's next phase of manufacturing expansion.
An eight-member Taiwan delegation that toured Tirunelveli SIPCOT and VOC Port in Thoothukudi earlier this June concluded that the region's logistics capacity has made it a potential site for the state's next wave of manufacturing clusters, particularly in green energy, electronics and electric vehicles, said Stephen S. C. Hsu, Director General of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Center (TECC) in Chennai in an interview with The New Indian Express. Hsu, who has recently marked his first year in Chennai, described the recent visit mainly as “a fact-finding trip”.
The trip to the south reflects a wider recalibration of how Taiwanese enterprises view Tamil Nadu — less as a manufacturing destination and more as a strategic partner for high-tech investment. While footwear, textiles, machinery and electronics assembly remain established strengths in the north, investor appetite has shifted toward advanced manufacturing, semiconductor supply-chain components, EVs and green-energy infrastructure, Hsu said.
The southward pivot comes as bilateral trade accelerates. Taiwan-India trade volume reached 10.6 billion USD in 2024 and rose to a record 12.5 billion USD in 2025; from January this year till now, bilateral trade volumes have grown 30 per cent year-on-year, Hsu said. Over the next three to five years, TECC in Chennai expects fresh capital inflows as mid-tier technology suppliers relocate, generating high-skilled roles for local engineering graduates.
Tamil Nadu's pitch to investors rests on what Hsu termed a "holy trinity" of ports, industrial parks and workforce: direct maritime connectivity through Chennai Port and VOC Port cuts supply-chain transit times and cost, while SIPCOT's purpose-built infrastructure and a skilled labour pool round out the offer. Combined with a mature industrial ecosystem and supportive state policy, these give Tamil Nadu an edge over competing states, Hsu said. He highlighted his vision for the next decade- “Design from Taiwan, Make in Tamil Nadu”.
Keen to woo Taiwanese investments to Tamil Nadu, the director general looks forward to the meeting with Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay along with Taiwan Chamber of Commerce soon. Highlighting the role played by Taiwan, he said there are more than 300 Taiwanese companies in India, and 75% are located in South India, especially in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, with the accumulated investment amount of 5.7 billion USD, and generating 214,000 jobs in India over the years, he said.
Challenges remain largely cultural rather than structural, centred on differences in working culture and operational practices between Taiwanese firms and local partners, according to Hsu.
A tripartite memorandum of understanding between the Chennai Institute of Technology, Taiwan's National Formosa University and industry group AGEM aims to build advanced semiconductor research capacity, with the goal of training local engineering students into global design engineers — a cohort Hsu called "ambassadors of innovation" in the Taiwan-India relationship.
To deepen the semiconductor and electronics ecosystem, the state should offer targeted incentives addressing what deep-tech investors need most: reliable water and power supply, a complete component supply chain, and high-skilled engineering talent, Hsu said.
TECC in Chennai is pushing for single-window regulatory clearances tailored to foreign SMEs, ready-built factory sheds within industrial parks, and tax waivers for the first 24 months of operation — measures it says would draw smaller Taiwanese suppliers into the state.
Hsu framed the relationship in geopolitical terms, describing Taiwan's New Southbound Policy as complementary to India's Act East Policy, and calling the current period of global supply-chain restructuring "a golden time" for Taiwanese firms considering a shift to India.
"Tamil Nadu is no longer just a potential destination; it is a proven launchpad for success," Hsu said, adding that the TECC in Chennai remains committed to working closely with the state government to guide Taiwanese companies "every step of the way."
Taiwanese investors are looking beyond Chennai and Sriperumbudur's established industrial belt, with southern Tamil Nadu emerging as a potential destination for the state's next phase of manufacturing expansion.
An eight-member Taiwan delegation that toured Tirunelveli SIPCOT and VOC Port in Thoothukudi earlier this June concluded that the region's logistics capacity has made it a potential site for the state's next wave of manufacturing clusters, particularly in green energy, electronics and electric vehicles, said Stephen S. C. Hsu, Director General of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Center (TECC) in Chennai in an interview with The New Indian Express. Hsu, who has recently marked his first year in Chennai, described the recent visit mainly as “a fact-finding trip”.
The trip to the south reflects a wider recalibration of how Taiwanese enterprises view Tamil Nadu — less as a manufacturing destination and more as a strategic partner for high-tech investment. While footwear, textiles, machinery and electronics assembly remain established strengths in the north, investor appetite has shifted toward advanced manufacturing, semiconductor supply-chain components, EVs and green-energy infrastructure, Hsu said.
The southward pivot comes as bilateral trade accelerates. Taiwan-India trade volume reached 10.6 billion USD in 2024 and rose to a record 12.5 billion USD in 2025; from January this year till now, bilateral trade volumes have grown 30 per cent year-on-year, Hsu said. Over the next three to five years, TECC in Chennai expects fresh capital inflows as mid-tier technology suppliers relocate, generating high-skilled roles for local engineering graduates.
Tamil Nadu's pitch to investors rests on what Hsu termed a "holy trinity" of ports, industrial parks and workforce: direct maritime connectivity through Chennai Port and VOC Port cuts supply-chain transit times and cost, while SIPCOT's purpose-built infrastructure and a skilled labour pool round out the offer. Combined with a mature industrial ecosystem and supportive state policy, these give Tamil Nadu an edge over competing states, Hsu said. He highlighted his vision for the next decade- “Design from Taiwan, Make in Tamil Nadu”.
Keen to woo Taiwanese investments to Tamil Nadu, the director general looks forward to the meeting with Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay along with Taiwan Chamber of Commerce soon. Highlighting the role played by Taiwan, he said there are more than 300 Taiwanese companies in India, and 75% are located in South India, especially in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, with the accumulated investment amount of 5.7 billion USD, and generating 214,000 jobs in India over the years, he said.
Challenges remain largely cultural rather than structural, centred on differences in working culture and operational practices between Taiwanese firms and local partners, according to Hsu.
A tripartite memorandum of understanding between the Chennai Institute of Technology, Taiwan's National Formosa University and industry group AGEM aims to build advanced semiconductor research capacity, with the goal of training local engineering students into global design engineers — a cohort Hsu called "ambassadors of innovation" in the Taiwan-India relationship.
To deepen the semiconductor and electronics ecosystem, the state should offer targeted incentives addressing what deep-tech investors need most: reliable water and power supply, a complete component supply chain, and high-skilled engineering talent, Hsu said.
TECC in Chennai is pushing for single-window regulatory clearances tailored to foreign SMEs, ready-built factory sheds within industrial parks, and tax waivers for the first 24 months of operation — measures it says would draw smaller Taiwanese suppliers into the state.
Hsu framed the relationship in geopolitical terms, describing Taiwan's New Southbound Policy as complementary to India's Act East Policy, and calling the current period of global supply-chain restructuring "a golden time" for Taiwanese firms considering a shift to India.
"Tamil Nadu is no longer just a potential destination; it is a proven launchpad for success," Hsu said, adding that the TECC in Chennai remains committed to working closely with the state government to guide Taiwanese companies "every step of the way."
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