Taiwan to rank among world's top-three ATV producers

Taipei, March 31, 2004 (CENS)--Taiwan is expected to account for over 30% of the global production volume of all terrain vehicles (ATVs), making it one of the top-three ATV production nations along with the United States and Japan, according to local ATV makers.

ATV is a rising recreational vehicle with similar riding mode as motorcycles. With four big wheels, the off-road vehicle can be ridden under most road conditions for sport and utility/transportation purposes. Currently, the North America is the largest ATV market in the world, and the U.S. the No. 1 production nation.

Several Taiwan ATV makers now play a vital role in the international ATV industry by producing for famous international brands on an OEM/ODM (original equipment/design manufacturing) basis or sell their own-brand ATVs in major markets such as the U.S. and industrialized nations in Europe.

Some local ATV makers are very optimistic about the global ATV sales this year as the U.S. economy is recovering and the strong appreciation of the euro has greatly boosted the competitiveness of Taiwan-made ATVs. They forecasted the global ATV sales volume to reach about one million units this year.

For the rapidly expanding global ATV market, many local makers, both those diversified from powered two-wheeler (PTW) makers and newcomers from other industries, have been expanding their capacities to grab more business opportunities.

Both Din Li Metal Industrial Co., Ltd. And Her Chee Industrial Co., Ltd., for example, are carrying out aggressive expansion projects. The former has bought new land lots for building new ATV production lines and the later is actively expanding capacities for the larger-displacement, such as 150cc, 200cc and 300cc, ATV segments.

Her Chee, a leading PTW exporter, said that it launch its first ATV products in 1997 and won the EEC certification for its ATV models in 2000. Currently, the Taiwan ATV maker has set up a distribution chain in Europe for its Adly brand ATV models. Din Li said that it has won many orders from customers in Europe.

According to industry sources, most local ATV makers are actively developing sales in Europe after gaining a solid foothold in the U.S.

The sources said that Taiwan ATV makers boast lower production costs than their counterparts in Japan and the U.S., and their quality and production techniques have been recognized by the international market. Accordingly, Taiwan is expected to become a major ATV production nation in the coming two to three years, the sources added.

ATV makers in mainland China, the same sources said, can hardly catch up with Taiwan counterparts in the coming three years, as the ATV line often involves small-batch, large-variety production mode and the products have to meet strict international safety standards.