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Ma opens national energy conference

2015-01-28

President Ma Ying-jeou said Jan. 26 that the government is working to achieve an optimal energy mix for Taiwan on the road to creating a low-carbon environment and ensuring sustainable development.

“The country can ill-afford to give up any form of energy, whether it is fossil fuel, natural gas, nuclear, solar or wind,” Ma said. “It is the government’s top policy priority to develop electricity sources that are affordable, clean, reliable, sufficient and sustainable.”

The president made the remarks at the opening of the national energy conference in Taipei City. Announced in April last year following the decision to shutter the controversial Lungmen Nuclear Power Plant in New Taipei City’s Gongliao District, the event underscores the government’s commitment to achieving a win-win outcome on the issue of energy generation.

Organized by the Energy Bureau under the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the two-day conference was attended by around 180 legislators, officials and representatives from the private and public sectors.

According to Ma, the energy conference serves as a platform for all parties to reach consensus on Taiwan’s energy policymaking. “This is important as our independent power grids restrict us from purchasing electricity from abroad, forcing us to import 98 percent of our energy-producing resources,” he said.

“Despite significant progress over the years, the development of renewable energy remains challenging given the technological barriers and high production costs involved,” he said.

With Taiwan’s three operational nuclear power plants set for retirement soon, and Lungmen sealed until its future can be determined, Ma said Taiwan will soon face the specter of electricity shortages. “The nation’s heavy reliance on fossil fuel also poses a serious challenge when it comes to slashing carbon emissions and combating climate change.”

But despite these difficulties, the president said the government has made great progress to date in cutting power consumption, ensuring stable supply and reducing carbon emissions.

“A raft of measures introduced since I took office in May 2008 has seen Taiwan’s annual energy consumption efficiency increase 2 percent,” he said, adding that the country is one of two in the world to replace its traffic lights with light-emitting diode fixtures.

“At the same time, Taiwan’s carbon emissions per unit of gross domestic product fell by an average 2.56 percent per year between 2010 and 2013, with its global share of total emissions dropping from 0.95 percent in 2007 to 0.84 percent in 2011.”

The president said other programs in the pipeline include plans to increase the capacity of installed renewable energy devices by 27 percent to 13,750 megawatts before 2030. “This will help keep Taiwan on the path to becoming a cleaner and greener nation in terms of energy production and consumption.”


Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=226828&CtNode=413)