Taiwan's International Smart Energy Week (Energy Taiwan), co-organized by SEMI Taiwan and TAITRA, started its expo on September 19. This three-day show took place in Taipei. During the press conference, with the topic of "The New Outlook of Taiwan's Green Energy", organizers invited Director General Dr. Chuan-Neng Lin of Bureau of Energy, Ministry of Economic Affairs (Taiwan) and renewable industry opinion leaders to express their insights about the latest trends and critical technologies about PV power, offshore wind power, hydrogen energy, fuel cell, energy storage, smart grid and green finance.

The Earth is in a turning point of energy transition. Green energy might replace traditional fossil fuel and nuclear power, and become the new engine that drives economies to grow. According to International Energy Agency (IEA)'s prediction, by 2022, global renewable energy generation installation capacity might take 43% of total output. IEA projected that investment capital of global renewable energy will reach 16.5 trillion USD by 2030.

According to BOE's statistics, in recent years, Taiwan's installation of new renewable energy grew year by year. In 2017, new installations were 530,000 kilowatts, up 34.5% YoY.

Taiwan's solar and wind power generation was increased considerably, by 49.4% YoY and 17.1% YoY, respectively. They both set a historical record in 2017.

Terry Tsao, SEMI Taiwan regional president stated, in order to promote renewable energy, technologies need to evolve, infrastructure construction should be more comprehensive, electricity generation costs have to drop, and what's more, citizens need to be educated and become supportive.

Energy Taiwan provided the domestically-largest international energy platform by bridging the industries, government, and academics. The expo, forums, and procurement meetings enhanced cooperation and technology innovation. Besides, Energy Taiwan was a much-publicized event in the nation, so it helps people understand the necessity of promoting renewable energy.

Based on the past 11 years of reputation and connections, PV Taiwan has been upgraded to Energy Taiwan in 2018. The show presented four different industries, including PV Taiwan, Wind Energy Taiwan, HFC Taiwan, and Smart Storage Taiwan. Energy Taiwan planned for three major theme pavilions, covering Taiwan Premium Solar Power System, Standards, Testing and Certification, and Green Finance and Insurance. There were advanced green energy country pavilions, including German Trade Office Taipei, Netherlands Trade and Investment Office, and Flanders Investment and Trade (Belgium).

Simon Wang, Executive Vice President of Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA), explained that this event gathered about 176 exhibitors who used more than 510 booths. This show was expected to attract more than 10,000 visitors. There were 17 international forums and seminars during three days.

The PV Taiwan exhibition showcased the latest products from domestic and international manufacturers, covering manufacturing equipment, solar cell/module, system integration, and applications from leading companies, and highlighted the PV energy supply chain's elites. For domestic companies in the show, there were United Renewable Energy Co., Ltd. (UREC), Taiwan Solar Module Manufacturing Co (TSMMC), Motech, TSEC, AUO, Win Win Precision Technology Co., Ltd., Giga Solar Materials Corp., Tainergy Tech, PrimeVOLT, and Ablerex Electronics Co., Ltd. Renowned international inverter companies (such as Solaredge and Huawei) looked forward to the outlook of Taiwan market.

In Wind Energy Taiwan, SEMI explained that prominent players participated. They were China Steel, Hitachi, CSBC Corporation, EnBW (Germany's biggest utility group), WPD and Ørsted who both are the largest winners of Taiwan offshore wind power's selection projects in 2018. These industry giants showcased their technologies of wind power, so as to compete for the market share of wind power generation in Taiwan and to use Taiwan as the testing water before entering the Asian offshore wind energy generation market.

For HFC Taiwan, Taiwan Hydrogen Industrial Development Alliance participated. For Smart Storage Taiwan, Taiwan Smart Grid Industry Association, Mobiletron, DIJIYA, and KANEKA from Japan showcased in the expo. Together, they presented the future technology for "hydrogen economy", smart grid, and smart storage systems.

TAITRA pointed out that green finance and insurance pavilion was available. Bank SinoPac and Cathay United Bank are both supporting the development of green electricity domestically. They could offer consultancy or finance services for green projects. In the expo, from inquiry to closure of the case, the banks offered all-in-one services, in order to accelerate business networking.

 (Image credit: Pixabay)