The Taiwan Space Agency (TASA) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Polish Space Agency (POLSA) to lay out a framework for the two nations to forge closer cooperation in the space industry.
Based on the MOU, Taiwanese and Polish companies and academics would seek to explore cooperation possibilities in the areas of telecommunications and cloud-based or Earth observation services, POLSA vice president for industry cooperation Michal Wiercinski said at the Taiwan International Assembly of Space Science, Technology and Industry (TASTI) in Kaohsiung.
Wiercinski is heading a Polish delegation at the event to showcase his country’s competitiveness in fields related to the space industry.
Photo: Wang Jung-hsiang,Taipei Times
TASTI is an annual event organized by TASA that aims to bring together experts in the sector and allow them to share their insights.
This year’s event began on Monday and ends today at the Kaohsiung Exhibition Center.
TASA and POLSA previously signed an MOU to boost two-way cooperation on space on the sidelines of the Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, Colorado, in April, Wiercinski said, adding that Poland is taking part in the Taiwan event for the first time this year.
Poland is a newcomer in the space industry compared with other European powers such as France or Germany, but it has made outstanding progress since joining the European Space Agency in 2012, he said.
It has a cluster of about 70 companies with highly energetic and skilled engineers, and at a time when Poland’s small and medium-sized space companies are looking beyond the saturated European market, “Taiwan is on our list,” he said.
Wiercinski hailed Taiwan’s advanced satellite manufacturing capability, and said he was also impressed with its rocket research and development.
All this offers great potential for engagement between Taiwan and Poland, capable of bringing mutual benefits to the two sides, he said.