On 20 March, the ECCT arranged a visit to Hsinchu Country. The trip was part of the ECCT's ongoing efforts to expand activities to include cities and counties across Taiwan. The trip included a meeting and lunch with Hsinchu County Magistrate (equivalent to mayor) Chiu Ching-chun and senior government officials and a tour of Taiwan's most prestigious research and development incubator, the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI).

The meeting was arranged by the ECCT's Low Carbon Initiative (LCI) to discuss cooperation with the Hsinchu County government on promoting low carbon development in Hsinchu County. The ECCT delegation was headed by ECCT Vice Chairman Giuseppe Izzo, who is also the LCI representative on the ECCT's board of directors, CEO Freddie Hoeglund and LCI Director Raoul Kubitschek. Magistrate Chiu was accompanied by senior county government officials including Yang Wen-ke, Secretary General of the Hsinchu County Government and Huang Shih-han, Director-General of the Environmental Protection Bureau. The meeting was attended by several LCI members.

At the meeting the ECCT CEO gave a short introduction to the ECCT while the Vice Chairman and LCI Director introduced the LCI. Magistrate Chiu welcomed ECCT delegates to his county. He lauded the contribution of Europeans to Taiwan's development through trade and investment. He went on to highlight some of the many advantages of conducting R&D and doing business in Hsinchu County.

Hsinchu County is promoting low carbon development through various initiatives such as installing solar panels on public facilities and introducing electric buses. The county is now seeking investors to establish operations in the Hsinchu International Environmental Education Park project and welcomed ECCT LCI members to participate. At the conclusion of the meeting, the ECCT presented a copy of the LCI's recently-released report "The Path to Industrial Energy Efficiency in Taiwan - Partnering with the EU" to Magistrate Chiu