Kinpo Group to return to stable growth

Kinpo Group (金寶集團), which comprises Kinpo Electronics Inc (金寶電子), AcBel Polytech Inc (康舒科技) and Cal-Comp Electronics and Communications Co (泰金寶), yesterday said that its operations would return to stable growth this year on the back of strong demand for artificial intelligence (AI) applications and its efforts in business transformation.US tariffs and weak demand for consumer electronics weighed on the group’s performance in the first half of last year, but the group adjusting its product development strategy toward AI applications, memory modules and fuel cells, as well as growing market demand for data center and server power solutions, lifted its performance in the second half, group chairman Jerry Hsu (許介立) said at a corporate event in Taipei.The group reported revenue for last year of NT$195.08 billion (US$6.17 billion), compared with NT$196.1 billion a year earlier.This year, the group aims to improve profitability by focusing on products aligned with the AI trend, while stepping up development of new products, such as high-power power supply products from 33-kilowatt and 72-kilowatt power shelves to high-voltage direct current (HVDC) solutions, amid the surging power demand from AI servers and data centers over the next five to 10 years, Hsu said.AcBel Polytech would begin mass production of its 33-kilowatt power products this year as the power management solutions provider deepens cooperation with cloud service providers (CSPs), and continues development of HVDC solutions to integrate power distribution units, power shelves, backup battery systems and thermal management platforms, he said. AcBel Polytech’s AI-related products are expected to account for 30 percent of the company’s total revenue this year, up from 20 percent last year, Hsu said. Demand for the company’s fuel cell products is also expected to grow exponentially over the next few years, he said. AcBel Polytech is preparing to expand capacity at its plant in New Taipei City’s Tamsui District (淡水), and other plants in the US and Mexico, he said.In addition, AcBel Polytech’s Plano, Texas-based subsidiary, OmniOn Power, has entered major CSPs’ board-level DC-to-DC power supply chains, with its revenue forecast to grow 20 to 30 percent this year, Hsu said.Cal-Comp Electronics and Communications also plans to expand capacity at its manufacturing sites in Thailand, the Philippines, Mexico, the US and Brazil this year to better navigate tariff uncertainties and meet customer needs, he added.Meanwhile, Kinpo Electronics plans to collaborate with AcBel Polytech this year to develop new charging pile products, further expanding its product portfolio, Kinpo Electronics president Andrew Chen (陳威昌) said.Looking ahead, the group aims to transform into an original design manufacturer from a pure electronics manufacturing services provider through allocating resources on higher-margin products, adjusting product portfolios and solidifying ties with customers, Hsu said.