Shinfox Energy has taken the first step in the development of small hydropower stations by having acquired the investment project “Establishment of Small Hydropower Station Equipment for No. 1286 of Normal Section at Fengyuan District of Nangan Line” by the Irrigation Agency of the Council of Agriculture. The two parties have now signed for the contract, and the project is expected to implement grid-connection and power generation after construction is completed at the end of October 2023, with a target annual power generation of 3.3 million kWh.
Hu Hui-sen, General Manager of Shinfox Energy, explained that the small hydropower plant tender at the Shigang Dam (Nangan Line of Fengyuan District) is a run-of-the-river hydropower plant that has a mere capacity of 560kW, though it symbolizes that “drainages or farmland irrigation in Taiwan would be able to generate power in the future from the success of this demonstration field”.
Shinfox Energy pointed out that this contract is effective for 20 years, and the tender equipment has a capacity of 560kW, which will establish small hydropower equipment that generates 3.3 million kW of power each year. The power generation, according to an average monthly power consumption of 339kW for each household during 2020, will be able to provide enough power for nearly 1000 households for an entire year. This will be the first step for Shinfox Energy’s in the development of small hydropower.
The company will utilize existing hydropower facilities, including dams, hydropower plants, and irrigation channels, to develop small hydropower and enhance the power generation of green energy.
Japan has years of experience and foundation in small hydropower. Taiwan has a similar irrigation system to Japan, and TPC, various water conservancy units, and the Irrigation Agency, have been actively promoting small hydropower in recent years so as to attain the government’s target of 20% renewable energy by 2025, and now Shinfox Energy has started to invest in the development and establishment of small hydropower.
The company commented that a small hydropower generator has a capacity of below 2MW, which is roughly 1/3 to the size of a generator for large hydropower plants, or smaller. Despite a smaller scale, small hydropower is regarded as the most stable power base load, as well as an eco-friendly and sustainable power source, due to its eco-friendliness, simple engineering, and lower construction cost.
The 2008 annual small hydropower evaluation report of the Irrigation Agency indicates that there a total of 79 areas with potential in small hydropower, which include 47 rivers and 32 irrigation channels. The Taiwan SHP Industries Alliance estimates that the development potential of small hydropower would surpass 2GW for the next 3-5 years.
TPC has also been looking for potential sites of small hydropower around Taiwan in recent years, as well as researching the feasibility of small hydropower generators. Aside from the small hydropower plan for dams under the Central Region Water Resources Office between 2014 and 2018, TPC is also actuating the selection and inspection of engineering technology, as well as financial efficiency, for small hydropower plants in Taiwan, which is currently under development at an approximate capacity of 28MW.
(Cover photo source: Shinfox Energy)