Official guarantees green energy supply despite warnings of 'electricity shortfall'

Taipei, Nov. 20 (CNA) Taiwan's government will ensure power supply and access to sufficient green energy, Kao Shien-quey (高仙桂), deputy head of the National Development Council (NDC) told business representatives on Wednesday.

"We must ensure sufficient green energy purchasable by corporations and stable power supply" for them, Kao said at an event marking the release of the 2025 Position Papers of the European Chamber of Commerce Taiwan (ECCT) in Taipei.

The NDC official's comments came after the ECCT annual papers warned of the "risk of a critical electricity shortfall," with the chamber's head Giuseppe Izzo also noting that "there is a long way to go" in the Taiwanese government's efforts to develop wind power.

The papers said Taiwan's offshore wind capacity might "fall well short of" the government's 13.1 gigawatts (GW) target for 2030, as it was projected to have had only 2.4 GW of installed capacity by the end of 2024.

"The gap between goals and actual installations exacerbates the risk of a critical electricity shortfall in future years," the papers said.

In October, the Cabinet reported that Taiwan's offshore wind capacity had reached 2.7 GW in August and that it would aim to increase that capacity to 7.9 GW by 2028.

The ECCT papers also took note of Taiwan's "diminishing" appeal to foreign investors due to limited marine areas available for wind farm projects and high local content costs.

According to Izzo, there should be "better coordination" within the central government and between the central and local governments to streamline the review process for renewable energy projects, such as establishing "a ministerial task force" to tackle the needs of different stakeholders.

"A true one-stop shop implies having a single entity or office with the authority and resources to actively support applicants and resolve issues in the permitting process handled by all other ministries," he added.

While acknowledging that the development of offshore wind energy and solar power had not proceeded "as previously expected," Kao told the event that the government was "doing its utmost" to minimize the delay.

At the same time, the government is taking several measures, such as strengthening grid protection, increasing electricity storage, and exploring new energy sources, among others, to better ensure power supply, she added.

Upon receiving the ECCT's papers, which include nearly 200 issue recommendations for Taiwan's government from its 25 committees, the NDC official said the government would take the business community's advice into account.

In response to a reporter's question, Izzo, the chamber's head, said investment in Taiwan from European companies had been on the rise, suggesting that investors did not perceive an imminent security risk facing Taiwan.

The ECCT represents more than 1,000 members from over 400 European companies and organizations with operations in Taiwan.