Taiwan inks offshore wind deal with the UK

The UK eyes export growth of offshore wind products to Taiwan.

The British Office in Taipei and Taiwan International Ports Corporation (TIPC) inked a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the joint cooperation in respect of the development of Taiwan’s offshore wind industry.

The two parties said in an announcement that further exchange in the areas of policy, strategy, technology, operations, and maintenance to promote offshore wind port and marine sector will be accelerated. They also agreed to increase information sharing and co-operation.

“This MOU signing coincides with the recent announcement by the UK government of a new offshore wind sector deal in the UK, which commits more government resources to technology innovation, will provide long-term certainty for industry to deliver a low-cost and clean energy system for the UK, and will broaden our offshore wind skills base,” British Office representative Catherine Nettleton commented.

On 7 March, the UK announced that it will invest EUR250m in the offshore wind sector, especially companies in the areas like the North East, East Anglia, Humber, and the Solent, to spur growth. It also aims to boost global exports to countries like Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan to EUR2.6b annually by 2030 by supporting smaller supply chain companies looking to export for the first time.

Ying-Feng Chung, president of Port of Taichung, TIPC, said, “In order to fit in with the government’s plan for the development of off-shore wind farms, the Port of Taichung, TIPC, has formulated plans to provide diversified services, including port infrastructure (such as heavy-loaded wharf and land), logistics services, wind turbine O&M base, and wind farm training.”

The Port of Taichung will accommodate the pre-assembly operation of Taiwan’s first pilot wind farm in March 2019, he added.

Photo by Focus Taiwan