Taipei, Oct. 12 (CNA) Formosa I, Taiwan's first offshore wind power plant, is scheduled to begin commercial operations by the end of this year, according to Swancor Holding Co., one of the shareholders of the wind farm project.
Robert Tsai, chairman of Swancor, a fine chemical and carbon fiber composite supplier in Taiwan, said the installation of 20 wind power turbines in the second phase of construction of Formosa I has been completed and the wind power mill's commercial operations will start by the end of this year.
The wind farm is located two to six kilometers off the west coast of Miaoli County in northern Taiwan.
Along with the first phase of construction, a total of 22 wind power turbines have been installed for the Formosa I project, paving the way for it to be the first offshore wind power farm to be inaugurated in the country.
Formosa I is jointly owned by Danish energy developer firm Orsted, which holds a 35 percent stake, Japan-based power producer JERA Co., which has a 32.5 percent stake, Macquarie Capital of Australia, which owns a 25 percent stake, and Swancor, which owns the remaining 7 percent, according to Formosa I's website.
Orsted is one of the companies that has received permission from Taiwan's government earlier this year to develop offshore wind power at a time when it is pushing for efforts to increase the use of renewable energy and build an eco-friendly environment.
Formosa I comprises two phases, with the first designed to have a total capacity of 8MW and consisting of two turbines that were successfully installed in October 2016.
The second phase will provide a further 120MW of capacity, which will boost the total capacity of the project to 128MW. That is expected to supply power to about 128,000 households each year.
Tsai said since Phase II of the construction started at the end of May, the project experienced severe weather, including strong winds and waves, due to the influence of four typhoons and tropical storms, but the unfavorable factors were overcome, allowing the construction to be completed.
After completing the 20 wind turbines, Tsai said, Formosa I will operate on a trial basis to generate power in preparation for the upcoming commercial operations.
The second phase of the construction involves several foreign wind power developers as subcontractors, including Belgium-based Jan De Nul N.V and Spain-based windfarm builder Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy, as well as participation by wind power development specialists.
Tsai said the completion of Phase II in the Formosa I project represented a milestone for Swancor, which stepped into offshore wind power development in Taiwan in 2015.
It also represents progress for Taiwan's offshore wind power industry.
In September, Orsted said it was planning to issue Taiwan dollar-denominated green bonds on the local market by the end of the year to raise money for its renewable energy development here.
