Taiwan bucks clean power drive

Taiwan's utilities have cranked natural gas-fired electricity generation to new highs this year, bucking regional and global trends towards increased clean energy within power mixes.

- Gavin Maguire

A liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker is tugged towards a thermal power station in Futtsu, east of Tokyo, in this Nov 13, 2017 file photo.

(REUTERS)

Just over 87% of Taiwan's electricity supply was produced by fossil fuels in the first eight months of this year, data from energy think tank Ember showed, the highest fossil fuel share on record for Asia's eighth-largest economy.

That fossil fuel generation share also sharply exceeded Asia's average of around 62% and the global average of 57%, meaning Taiwan stands out among major economies in terms of energy transition momentum — albeit for the lack thereof.

A dearth of raw material deposits means Taiwan must import more than 90% of energy products, including nearly all of the oil, coal and natural gas it burns.

The mountainous and densely populated island is also ill-suited to large-scale renewable energy farms, though there is rapidly growing adoption of rooftop solar systems in several areas.

The share of utility-scale electricity generation from renewable energy was around 11% last year. That could climb to around 15% in 2025 due to offshore wind projects that entered operation this year.