In a press release issued on 30 April, Danish offshore wind developer Ørsted A/S announced that it will formally proceed with the first-phase construction of the Greater Changhua Project – an offshore wind farm complex located off the west coast of Taiwan.

The board of the company made the final investment decision after Taiwan’s Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) approved the company’s proposal on the inclusion of local suppliers in the project cycle. Following the greenlighting of the supply chain plan, Ørsted and the island’s public utility Taiwan Power Co. (Taipower) signed a power purchase agreement that is based on the feed-in tariff rate set by MOEA on 30 January.

The site of the Greater Changhua Project is located 35-50 kilometers from the shores of the Changhua County in central Taiwan. The first-phase construction, which is designated as Changhua 1 and 2a, will cover the southeast and southwest areas of the whole project site. Once completed, Changhua 1 and 2a will have a total generation capacity of 900MW. This scale would be sufficient to power around a million households on the island. The installation of wind turbines is scheduled to take place between 2021 and 2022.

Martin Neubert, Executive Vice President and CEO of offshore wind development at Ørsted, said that his team has been working diligently over the past several months to obtain the construction permit, renegotiate contracts, get the supply chain plan approved, and secure the power purchase agreement. Neubert also emphasized that Ørsted achieved these milestones and reached its final investment decision through close cooperation with Taipower and other key decision-makers in Taiwan’s government. Neubert believes that the Greater Changhua Project bears enormous significance not only as the largest offshore wind farm in Taiwan but also as a symbol of the potential of decarbonized energy systems in Asia Pacific.

Matthias Bausenwein, President of Ørsted’s Asia-Pacific operation and Chairman of Ørsted Taiwan, said that the final investment decision on Changhua 1 and 2a is made in compliance with the government’s localization rules for the supply chain. The development of the Greater Changhua Project is therefore going to create many local jobs and foster tangible growth across various industries on the island. These benefits will be in addition to helping Taiwan make the transition to renewable energies. Bausenwein also said that the company is proud to have attained a high level of local content in the project.

The press release furthermore announced that the initial onshore works on Changhua 1 and 2a will commence in May.

 (Source: The content of this article draws from information provided by Ørsted A/S and reporting from the local Chinese language media. Photo: Ørsted A/S.)