Mainland China Unveils Bolder LED Streetlight Plan

Taipei, Dec. 8, 2009 (CENS)--Mainland China's Ministry of Science and Technology recently revised a bold plan to increase installation of light-emitting diode (LED) streetlights to two million units in 50 cities from tens of thousands in 21 cities throughout the mainland.

Behind the installation increase is the mainland's goal to conserve one billion kilowatt-hour of electrical power a year. The 50 cities will receive subsidies from the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Finance for their spending on the energy-saving lighting equipment.

The mainland's authorities plan to demand 70% of the lights to be made locally, which gives a boost to Taiwanese LED manufacturers running facilities in the mainland. They include Bright LED Electronics Corp., Opto Tech Corp., Unity Opto Technology Co., Ltd Epistar Corp. and Formosa Epitaxy Inc.

Formosa will set up an epitaxy-wafer factory in Yangzhou in the second quarter of 2010 and begin volume production at the factory in the third quarter. Epistar is planning to open a workshop in the mainland to shoot for a slice of the market.

Market research organization LEDinside estimates the mainland's demand for streetlights at only 400,000 units in 2010, far below market expectations although increasing from 2009's 200,000-300,000 lights. The organization estimates the mainland's streetlight market to begin to take off in 2012.

The mainland authorities estimate LED lighting to account for 30% of the mainland's lighting market in 2013, saving an estimated 140 billion kilowatt of electricity per hour.