Taiwan urged to speed up energy transition

Taipei, Nov. 27 (CNA) Danish representative to Taiwan Peter Sand said Wednesday that Taiwan should "accelerate" its energy transition efforts to ensure a reliable supply of green energy for future business needs.

At a press event in Taipei, Sand, who heads the Trade Council of Denmark, Taipei, said that while Taiwan's energy policy was "on the right track," the government needed to "accelerate [its] implementation."

Otherwise, he continued, it will be "challenging" for Taiwan to provide sufficient green energy needed by companies in Taiwan in the coming years.

"The pace of implementation is critical," he said, adding that speeding up Taiwan's energy transition would ensure its competitiveness in the global market.

As part of its efforts to promote the energy transition and phase out existing nuclear power, Taiwan's government has set a goal of increasing the share of renewable energy in its power generation mix to 30 percent by 2030.

During this transition period, coal is expected to account for 20 percent of the mix and gas for 50 percent.

However, there have been concerns about whether the government can achieve this goal, due to reports of delays in infrastructure projects and rising demands for green energy from tech companies.

Nevertheless, Sand said he and members of the Danish Decarbonization Alliance were "reassured" that the new government under President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) remained committed to continuing to promote energy transition and work to achieve net-zero goals by 2050.

The representative declined to comment on recent media reports of government corruption in the green energy sector, but emphasized the importance of offshore wind power and other green energy sources for Taiwan's future development.

He also stressed the need for Taiwan's government to make the business environment "sustainable."

The Danish Decarbonisation Alliance has brought together eight Danish companies hoping to facilitate dialogue and cooperation with Taiwan's government, according to Sand.

The alliance was initiated earlier this year by the Danish office, which represents Denmark's interests in Taiwan in the absence of formal diplomatic relations between the two sides.

Danish companies "stand ready" to assist Taiwan in achieving its energy transition goals by "sharing our experience, our skills, our technologies," Sand said, suggesting Denmark's success story could be replicated in Taiwan.