Taiwan’s Geosat Aerospace & Technology Inc and France’s Cavok UAS have signed an agreement to develop “China-free” drones, which the companies said would meet the needs of customers in democratic countries.
During a signing ceremony at the Taipei Representative Office in France on Monday last week, Geosat said they plan to develop long-range drones capable of vertical takeoff and landing for military and commercial users.
The planned drone, codenamed CK50-T, would be capable of performing airborne and maritime intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions, the firms said.
Photo: CNA
Cavok CEO Fabrice Parodi said he hopes the agreement would pave the way for further cooperation, as his company intends to build a production line in Taiwan and extend its reach in the Asia-Pacific region.
Production of the first drone under the partnership would be led by Cavok and take place in France with assistance from Geosat employees, Geosat chairman Lo Cheng-fang (羅正方) said.
The teams would obtain necessary certificates adopting international standards before introducing the drone to the global market, Lo said.
The teams would also meet in Taiwan to set up system integration and assembly for a subsequent drone, Lo said, adding that the plan is to mass produce the drones in Taiwan.
Taiwan is better than China for drone manufacturing thanks to its quality production capabilities, cross-industry business clusters and respect for intellectual property rights, Lo said.
Cavok wants to avoid becoming dependent on Chinese supply chains, Lo said, adding that more countries are exploring Taiwan as an alternative drone production center to Shenzhen, China.
Lo said that Taiwan is also better positioned as a drone manufacturing base than Southeast Asian countries, which offer cheaper labor, but trail behind in terms of maturity of chip and software engineering sectors.
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