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Given Taiwan's outstanding geographic conditions, the government will spare no effort pushing offshore wind power, with the goal of installing 5.5 GW wind-power capacity by 2025, pointed out Shen Jong-chin, minister of economic affairs, on Sept. 19.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the "summit on offshore wind power industry," an three-day forum consisting of 17 sessions, Shen noted that 18 of the world's 20 best offshore wind-power sites are located in the Taiwan Strait. Consequently, the government has solicited investors in offshore wind power, via selection before opening bidding, in order to attain reasonable rates, striving to forge a quality investment environment for both domestic and foreign investors, in the hope of localizing the offshore wind-power industry, including indigenous components and parts for related equipment, ultimately, according to Shen.
The forum was organized by the SEMI and the Green Energy Industry Promotion Center jointly, under the sponsorship of the MOEA. It took place alongside "2018 Energy Taiwan," a week-long event serving as a complete platform for exchanges among the industry, the government, and academia, covering PV power, wind power, hydrogen energy, fuel cell, and smart energy storage and application. Topics of the forum included government policy, market outlook, wind-turbine and maritime-engineering technologies, inspection and certification, talent cultivation, and green finance.
The forum attracted attendance by representatives from the government, the industry, and academia, including Wei Ming-ku, magistrate of Changhua County, and Chang Kuang-yao, Taichung deputy mayor, both of whom pledged to fully support the central government's policy in developing offshore wind power, especially in the aspect of related talent cultivation.
The development of offshore wind power in Taiwan will entail NT$1 trillion investment, creating 20,000 job openings and NT$121.8 billion of manufacturing output value a year, plus NT$700 billion of service output value in the next 20 years, underscoring its huge potential, for not only environmental protection but also economic development. Tsao Shi-lun, SEMI Taiwan regional president, stressed that SEMI will bridge the central and municipal governments, as well as offshore wind-power developers and local supply chain, helping the government materialize the renewable-energy vision for 2025.
(Information and photo courtesy of SEMI)