Taiwan's offshore wind power is about to enter the third stage of block development. Vendor selection operation is expected in September and has attracted various players. The total development capacity of Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) in Denmark is 6.3GW, of which Fengmiao (Fengyin Tonghui) off the Taichung coast has even passed preliminary review by the EIA on the 8th. The first phase of Changfang & Xidao, affected by the pandemic last year, will also start construction and installation next week, hoping to be completed in August.
Claire Lohan, CEO of CIP’s third stage development block, said that 6 wind farms are planned for CIP block development, with capacity of 6.3GW. The 5 wind farms were the obtain initial review by the EIA task force.
The three Fengfan, Fengcheng and Fengli projects are located in the sea off Hsinchu and Miaoli and placed relatively offshore at a water depth of more than 60 meters, so are good opportunities to use floating offshore wind turbines. Lohan stated that CIP has spared no effort in introducing innovative technology, both energy creation and energy storage including floating underwater foundations and diverse power conversion Power-to-X. Floating wind turbines can be installed in maritime zones that traditional fixed wind farms cannot reach, expanding the number of offshore wind power installations, and has a great potential for localization in Taiwan. Later, offshore wind power can be converted into other energy sources, such as green hydrogen and green ammonia. At present, CIP has set up multiple PTX sites around the world, and hopes to apply this technology in Taiwan.
Which floating technology is suitable for Taiwan? Lohan said CIP has not yet officially determined which floating technology to use. Currently, there are more than 100 floating technologies internationally but she believes that large-scale tubular underwater foundations have great potential to be manufactured and assembled in Taiwan.
There is no way to promote floating technology at this stage but this has been taken into account by the CIP program. Marina Hsu, managing director of CIP Taiwan, pointed out that she is currently in active discussions with SDMS and Century Iron & Steel. Currently, it is believed that Century Iron & Steel’s Taipei Port is the most suitable site for the development of floating underwater foundations. Taipei Port is a deep-water port and is suitable for the draft of floating technology. However, she also mentioned that with the floating trend and the future scale of wind turbines reaching 14 and 15MW, she also hopes that all sectors of society can simultaneously invest in related infrastructure.
At present, the first phase of the 100MW wind farm at CIP Changfang & Xidao is also progressing. Both installation and construction vessels have arrived in Taiwan and are being quarantined and cleared. Marina Hsu pointed out that last year, only three underwater foundations were installed due to the impact of the pandemic. The construction ship and the wind turbine installation ship have arrived at port and the wind turbine installation ship will also start the installation of the engine room, tower, and blades at the end of June. Hopefully, the first phase of Changfang & Xidao can be completed in August.
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