In mid-December 2022, the Taiwanese Ministry of Economic Affairs completed the price selection for the Round 3 Phase 1 offshore wind auction, for projects set to be built in 2026/27. A total of 10 projects, which had a combined estimated capacity of 8.7GW¹ (290% of the total allocation goal of 3GW for this phase), were initially selected. By the end of the month, the Bureau of Energy and Ministry of Economic Affairs allocated the 3GW of grid capacity to a total of seven projects based on its scoring criteria. By the end of August though, this was lowered further to 2.3GW.
Taiwan Round 3 Phase 1 Leasing Round – Capacity Bids/Allocation & Key Milestones
Source: Westwood WindLogix
Troubles abound with delays in the signing of the administrative contracts.
The initial deadline for signing the administrative contracts – which set out the terms for delivering the capacity – was pushed back twice, with a final date of 30 August 2023 eventually set by the government. The delays were related to developers having to get their ducks in a row where multiple moving parts such as global interest rates, inflation and soaring costs proved difficult to manage in accordance with deadlines set by the government.
Optimism in Taiwan wanes as only 26% of initial capacity bids moved forward to the development phase.
Administrative contracts were finally signed by the deadline date; however, these were only signed by five out of the seven allocated projects. 2.3GW worth of capacity was eventually committed to, with 665MW worth of projects being cancelled, falling short of the government’s intended 3GW allocation.
The two projects that did not proceed were Northland Power’s 500MW CanWind and Skyborn Renewables’ 165MW Datian wind farms. Northland Power decided not to move forward given its focus on progressing its Hai Long development towards a Final Investment Decision (FID). Skyborn Renewables’ decision stemmed from the fact that the capacity of Datian was too small, which proved economically unviable. These cancellations highlight the realities and difficulties of developing offshore wind farms in the current climate, especially in Taiwan.
Can Taiwan regain the momentum lost in Phase 1 through introspection and make up ground to meet its target?
The Taiwanese government has recognised the issues that were faced, and is now planning to announce selection rules for the upcoming Round 3 Phase 2 offshore wind tender in the third quarter of 2023. This set of selection rules is much anticipated as it will show how the Taiwanese government has incorporated feedback from developers on issues like wind farm size and local content requirements (among other factors) that affect the economic viability and bankability of projects – the major reason why developers struggled to manage in Phase 1. The cancelled 665MW capacity from Phase 1 will also be passed onto Phase 2, meaning that this capacity won’t be lost. These actions by the government will hopefully help the sector regain momentum and in turn increase Taiwan’s potential to reach its offshore wind target of 20.5GW² by 2035.
¹Total capacity is based on initial Environmental Impact Assessment planned capacities for the various wind farms.
²Implied 2035 offshore wind target based on 5.5GW by 2025 and 15GW additions over 2026-35.
Ruth Chen, Senior Analyst – Offshore Wind
[email protected]
