As government place an emphasis on wind power technology development, the Bureau of Energy of the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) in Taiwan entrusted Metal Industry Research and Development Centre (MIRDC) to implement the Development Plan for Key Technologies of Floating Offshore Wind Turbine. Meanwhile, MIRDC organized the “Conference for Industry Exchanges on Taiwan’s Floating Platform Establishiment Regulations” in June at Kaohsiung. The participants from industry, academic and research sectors including: CSC, CSBC, Taipower, Hung Hua Construction, Sinotech Engineering Consultants, and Chainson Industrial. Other international busineses partners also joined this forum, such as EOLFI and DNV-GL along with domestic industrial institutes including: Ship and Ocean Industries Research Center, NCKU Tainan Hydraulics Laboratory, Taiwan Institute of Economic Research, and CR Classification Society. The discussion is focused on local regulations and the capabilities of Taiwan floating offshore wind power industry. The speakers exchanged opinions on the feasibility of promoting the floating offshore wind power in Taiwan and they also shared industry experiences and recommendations on development based on their respective expertise.
Dr. Chia-min Wei, vice president of MIRDC indicated that floating offshore wind power is the main focus in the future. The valuable perspectives from this conference will assist Taiwanese companies to realize the current measures around the world. After obtaining a better understanding of the technological requirements and gaps of the industry, Taiwan will be able to better prepare itself in response to global market in terms of key technological R&D and industry developments. He also pointed out that the government has already invested resources to conduct preliminary research even though the floating wind power still remains in the certification stage around the world. As the global industry reaches a mature stage, the current research data and feedback we had done could help the government formulate the regulations and development strategies imminently.
During conference, Mr. Meng-yen Lee, MIRDC analyst presented the topic: “The Current Status of Global Floating Offshore Wind Power and Development Opportunities for Taiwan.” From an insight perspective, the participants acquired a better understanding of the offshore wind power market around the world today, and the regulations on application, establishment and industrialization in benchmark countries, as well as the trends of technology development. He also highlighted the challenges and opportunities under Taiwan’s current conditions as references for participants.
In addition, the industry professionals suggested that Taiwan can take European and Japanese approaches into consideration to acquire the actual data as references for drafting deployment regulations by referencing their measures such as devising certification plans based on single turbine or operations on a smaller scale. Taiwan can also refer to the regulations, accreditation standards and test certifications of different countries to establish our domestic regulations on floating wind farms. Furthermore, the plan could lead to a better understanding of industry capabilities, gaps and infrastructure requirements to provide further industry-level perspective for developing large-scale development plans.