Danish utility Ørsted has taken the final investment decision on its 920 MW Greater Changhua 2b and 4 offshore wind farms in Taiwan.
The company secured grid capacity in June 2018 in Taiwan’s first competitive price-based auction with no mandatory local content requirements. Ørsted subsequently penned a corporate power purchase agreement in July 2020 with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), which is the largest-ever contract of its kind in renewable energy.
The projects will be funded by capital provided by the Ørsted, combined with debt capital sourced from the domestic Taiwanese market.
Per Mejnert Kristensen, president of Ørsted Asia Pacific, said: “Today’s positive investment decision demonstrates that Ørsted is primed and ready to build and operate large-scale offshore wind projects in Taiwan.”
Located around 35 to 60 km off the Changhua coast, the Greater Changhua 2b and 4 offshore wind farms have obtained all environmental impact assessment approvals. Onshore construction is expected to start in 2023, with the fabrication of components in 2023 and 2024 and the completion of offshore construction expected by the end of 2025.
Ørsted is the biggest shareholder and co-owner of Taiwan’s first commercial-scale offshore wind project, Formosa 1, which was extended from a capacity of 8 MW to 128 MW in 2019. The utility is also building the Greater Changhua 1 and 2a offshore wind farms with a capacity of some 900 MW with the final commissioning expected this year.
