MHI Vestas Offshore Wind A/S, the world’s second-biggest offshore wind turbine maker, is planning to use Taiwan as a hub to assemble and export turbines as it aims to extend its footprint in Asia.
Taiwan has emerged as a hot spot for offshore wind as President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) works to phase out nuclear energy.
“For us, Taiwan will be an excellent platform for export to Southeast Asia” because of Taiwan’s push for offshore wind power and the proximity to markets such as Vietnam, said Philippe Kavafyan, chief executive officer for the venture between Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd of Japan and Denmark’s Vestas Wind Systems A/S, in an interview on Friday last week.
MHI Vestas this year announced that it would use Taiwanese manufacturers, including Tien Li Offshore Wind Technology Co (天力離岸風電) and China Steel Machinery Corp (中鋼機械), to supply turbine blades, towers and materials.
“We don’t really plan to open our own factory,” Kavafyan said, adding that such a plant would be set up by local partners. “Over time, there is a full plan to industrialize components and subsystems to increase the content we will do in Taiwan.”
MHI Vestas has been picked as a preferred supplier for Taiwanese offshore wind projects being developed by Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners and China Steel Corp (中鋼), with a combined capacity of at least 900 megawatts, Kavafyan said.
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